8F Meets the Avengers
by orchidsong.0710
Summary: When a class of eighth grade students uncover a sinister plot to take over the world, they call on the legendary Avengers to help them stop the villains. A two part story.


**8F Meets the Avengers**

 **A Fanfiction**

 **DISCLAIMER: This book is a work of (fan)fiction. Any references to historical events, real people and real places are used fictitiously. Other events, names and places are products of the author's imagination and resemblance to real people, living or dead, is purely coincidental. None of this is meant to insult or offend anyone mentioned (coincidentally) in the story.**

 **Dedication:**

 **Dedicated to the students of 8F. You inspire me, make me laugh and teach me new things every day. I'm thankful to be with a class like you. You're all amazing people, and I wish you all the best for the future. Good luck and keep being yourselves. Because that's the best thing about you all.**

Part One

 **Chapter One**

It was a normal day in John G. Althouse Middle School in Ms. Darvey's class. Well, their description of normal and yours probably don't match up. Because at this very second, the students of 8F were having a very spirited discussion about the logistics of superpowers.

"Thor's hammer trick could definitely work." Keegan declared. "Using the momentum of the hammer, he could easily launch himself into the sky and…"

"Travel to another dimension?" Rudaina interrupted. "Sorry to rain on your parade, Keegan, but in case you haven't noticed, Thor is a GOD."

"Yeah," Rudaina's friend Hannah agreed, "No one can get that much momentum from swinging a hammer.

"Okay, so in some aspects, Thor's hammer could work." Megan spoke up. "But what about Hulk? Talk about creative freedom."

"How are we supposed to know that a gamma bomb makes you green, crazy and major strong?" Taylor asked.

"Exactly." Willem said. "We aren't supposed to know. No one is psycho enough to make a gamma bomb and explode it, so we won't ever find out if enough gamma ray exposure turns you into a monster."

"Moving on, what about Iron Man?" William changed the subject. "Is his suit a possible creation?"

"Yes, theoretically, in a couple decades." Nathan said. "Wouldn't it be awesome to fly around like Iron Man?"

"Yeah, for sure." Talha agreed.

Their teacher, Ms. Darvey watched them in amusement from the entrance to the library. She had left for five minutes to get some photocopies, and this happens?

"Class." she called out to them. "Have you finished your worksheets?"

Every student looked down in almost perfect unison to see slightly filled in sheets about the events of the North-West Rebellion. The blanks for the answers held only a few words. Dexter, not knowing what else to do, wrote 'booty' in each empty space.

Ms. Darvey sighed. "I leave you for five minutes and you get nothing on your sheets? You need to learn to take initiative. All of you."

"We couldn't help it." Willem protested. "Praveen told us that DC superheroes had more realistic powers than Marvel ones, so we wanted to settle it."

"And have you concluded anything from your debate?" Ms. Darvey asked, her arctic blue eyes sparkling with curiosity, tinged with sarcasm.

"Well, we didn't finish." Willem admitted. "So results were inconclusive."

But before Ms. Darvey could reprimand the students for both not finishing their work and not coming up with a conclusion, an announcement came on over the P.A. system.

"Will Ms. Di Peña, Ms. Darvey, Mr. Samitch, Mrs. Rohan and Mr. Kowalski please come down to the office? Ms. Di Peña, Ms. Darvey, Mr. Samitch, Mrs. Rohan and Mr. Kowalski to the office?"

"Ooh, Ms. Darvey's in trouble..." Praveen said.

"PRAVEEN." the class groaned.

"What does she expect me to do? Leave my class alone for God knows how long?" Ms. Darvey complained, but she decided to go down anyways. "Finish your worksheets." she cried over her shoulder, even though she knew that it was extremely unlikely that they would.

"Hey, guys. I have a good joke. It's about Avengers: Age of Ultron." Taylor said.

"Oh, no... Not the shield joke." Hannah groaned. "It's HORRIBLE."

Taylor didn't listen, and mowed forward. "Captain America's shield is made of vibranium. What is Hawkeye's shield made of?" When no one replied, he gave the punchline. "Quicksilver."

Half the class groaned, the other half just stared at Taylor, confused.

"Quicksilver. That guy Pietro. Shielded Hawkeye from the bullets." Julian clarified to everyone who didn't understand.

"Agh." Jennifer yelled. "That's awful."

"I know," Rebecca said, "so awful, I want to leave. In fact, I'm going." With that, Rebecca walked out of the library.

Everyone laughed as Rebecca yelled, "QUICKSILVER!" from the hallway.

The minutes passed by, as the students began to debate if Captain America or Black Widow was more realistic, and who would come out on top in a fight- without weapons.

"Black Widow for sure." Megan said. "She's a freaking ninja. She could knock Cap out in seconds. Way more agile than him. Honestly, I bet Captain America couldn't last for ten minutes without his shield. She'd beat him hands down, and look good doing it."

"No way." Keegan argued. "Nothing against Widow, but Captain America is the elite soldier. He'd school her."

"No matter who'd come out on top, it would be amazing to watch them fight." Praveen said. "It would be an educational opportunity."

"Sheesh, Praveen. You make everything an educational opportunity." Serena complained.

"And what's wrong with that?" Praveen asked. Serena just sighed and ignored him.

"You know what would be awesome?" Taylor mused. "If the Avengers had, like, secret talents."

"Like what?" Jules asked.

"I don't know. Maybe Iron Man can play the guitar. Or Hawkeye likes laser tag. Oh, I've got it! Black Widow is an ace at TETRIS!"

"TETRIS? What the heck? _Why_ TETRIS?" Serena said.

"I'm pretty sure it's Russian." Taylor said.

"Ohhh..." The class said in unison. "Russian."

"Seriously?" Vivian said. "I think your Quicksilver joke was better than that."

"What're you going to do about it?" Taylor replied brazenly. "My jokes are what they are, deal with it, Viv."

"Whatever." Vivian said. "Does anyone know where Rebecca went? She shouldn't be gone so long. I wonder what's up."

"Calm down, Vivian. Rebecca probably just got distracted by a manga lying around somewhere." Jennifer giggled. "I bet she's fine. It's not like she stumbled in on a catastrophic, world-changing conversation."

"You're right, Jenny. Rebecca will be back soon." Vivian agreed. "But I'm sure she'll come back with something interesting to tell us."

 **Chapter 2**

Rebecca walked down the deserted hallway. There were no voices. No people. It was oddly quiet. _Too_ quiet. She ambled over to a water fountain and took a sip, the cold liquid rushing down her dry throat. But then, she heard something. A voice coming from the office. Rebecca knew she had to investigate, the conversation she was hearing sounded very suspicious.

Entering the office, Rebecca greeted the office assistant, "Hello Mrs. Terullo."

"Hello. Rebecca, is it?" Mrs. Terullo said. "Why are you here?"

"Oh, whoops." Rebecca said under her breath. She had no valid reason.

"Um, er, I have a really horrible headache, and my teacher told me to take a rest in the office." she lied quickly, trying to sound pitiful.

"Poor you." Mrs. Terullo replied sympathetically, believing every deceitful word. "Just take a seat, and relax, okay?"

"Okay, thank you." Rebecca replied.

In the office, the conversation was much more audible. Rebecca was thankful that she was born with strong hearing, because she could hear every word coming in loud and clear.

"This is why I need your help." Rebecca heard Mrs. Boise say. "I can't take over the world on my own, I need reinforcements. We'll be the Schooling Squadron."

 _Take over the world?_ Rebecca thought in shock. _Oh my goodness._

"And what makes you think we'll help you?" A voice that Rebecca recognized as Ms. Darvey said. Rebecca felt a glimmer of pride, listening to her teacher.

"I'll raise all your salaries. _AND_ I'll give you each one continent to rule over. I will take North America, Ms. Darvey can have Oceania and Australia, Mr. Kowalski can rule Europe, Ms. Di Peña can take South America, Mrs. Rohan can take Asia and Mr. Samitch can have Africa." Mrs. Boise said, tempting the teachers.

"Yes." Ms. Di Peña said.

"I'll do it." Mr. Kowalski decided.

"Why not?" Mr. Samitch said.

"Anything for higher pay and a continent." Mrs. Rohan added.

Rebecca waited in suspense for Ms. Darvey to denounce the deal or, heaven forbid, accept it.

"Deal." Ms. Darvey said.

Rebecca gasped audibly. Not Ms. Darvey too!

"Did you hear something?" Mr. Samitch asked. "Is someone spying on us?"

Rebecca's eyes widened, but she did not say a word. She just tiptoed out of the office, quiet as a mouse. She had to share the news with her class. They needed to stop Mrs. Boise's evil plan. Somehow.

The class had made no further progress on their worksheets when Rebecca came barreling into the room. No one had seen her move that fast before. Something must've been very wrong for her to be moving at such a speed.

"Mrs. Boise... evil... Darvey... continents... OH MY GOODNESS." Rebecca shrieked.

"Whoa, Becca. Slow down. Tell us everything." Hannah said.

"Okay, so I went to the office and heard Mrs. Boise talking to Mr. Samitch, Mr. Kowalski, Ms. Di Peña, Mrs. Rohan and Ms. Darvey. She wants to take over the world, with their help. She promised the teachers increased salaries and a continent each if they helped. Of course they said yes. Mrs. Boise tapped into all their biggest needs and desires." Rebecca explained.

"What do we do?" Nathan asked. "We can't stand around and let this happen."

"Call the Avengers." Taylor said, laughing weakly.

"I have a stupid suggestion." Willem said. "I was reading this Marvel comic, and Iron Man saved this girl from a falling building. He gave her a phone number, because that's just _so_ Tony Stark, and told her 'If you need anything, call. The Avengers will be there'."

"You don't think..." Will took in a breath.

"The phone number is _real_?" Felix said.

"Well," Dexter said, whipping out his ever-present phone, "Let's find out."

He passed the phone to Nicole, who punched in the number.

"What's the worst that could happen? We might call a pizza place." Taylor quipped.

The class held its breath as the phone rang. Once. Then twice. On the fourth ring, someone picked up. "Hello, you've reached Stark Industries Headquarters. How may I help you?"

Trying not to freak out, Nicole carefully formulated an answer, "We need assistance. It's extremely important."

"I am sorry, Mr. Stark is unavailable." the woman on the other end said. "Would you like me to pass on a message?"

"No, we're not calling Mr. Stark. We're calling Iron Man." Jules added, leaning into the speakerphone.

"Whom should I tell him is calling?

"Just tell him it is a matter of life and death. We've located a massive global threat."

"One moment, please." the woman replied.

A couple minutes later, a man came on the phone.

"This is the amazing Tony Stark. How may I be of assistance?" the genius behind the Iron Man suit said.

"Oh, hello Mr. Stark. My name is Nicole." Nicole answered eagerly.

"Hold on." There was a pause after Mr. Stark said this. "Nicole, as in thirteen year old gifted student council co-premier at John G. Althouse Middle School in Toronto, Canada?"

"How did you know?" Nicole gasped.

"I had JARVIS take a look on your bio." Stark answered. "I have information on every person in the world in my database. I have footage of your class right now, crowding around Dexter Sloan's phone. In fact I have footage of you and your classmates at school, at home..."

"Perish the thought." Nicole replied. "I'm not even going to ask how you have footage of me and my friends."

"So, what is this massive global threat you speak of?" Stark asked. "Just letting you know, I have a very tight schedule."

"Our school's principal has made a plan to take over the world."

"That's ridiculous."

"It's obvious, really. A school is like a benevolent dictatorship. The principal runs things with an iron fist, and gives all the teachers and students orders, not listening to student opinions. Honestly, I bet _all_ principals want to take over the world. It's no different from running a school."

"Smart theory. Meet me outside the school on the field at twelve o'clock sharp. We'll be there." Tony said, and hung up.

"Wait, did he say _we_?" Johan asked.

"As in the biggest _we_ team in the universe?" Vivian speculated.

"We just recruited the _AVENGERS?_ " Rudaina said.

Everyone rushed out the back door of the library to the field, where they sat down in the grass, and waited for backup to arrive. Some people tried to set up card games, but became distracted checking watches and phone clocks. No one could wait until twelve o'clock.

Then, at exactly 11:58, Jennifer noticed a sleek black jet zooming towards the school, and she cried, "Look! Is that a Quinjet?"

"Oh my God, I think it is." Rose replied excitedly.

The whole class craned their necks to see the jet flying towards them. No one could believe this was really happening. As the jet touched down, Willem let out an "eek" of excitement. The door began to open, slowly.

"For crying out loud, we've got a world to save. Can't this door open any faster?" A voice yelled from inside the jet. "Tony, where is the control for this thing?"

"Chill, Nat, it's dramatic." Another voice replied.

 **Chapter 3**

The door finally opened to reveal the famed Avengers. Tony hadn't been kidding when he said _we_. Every member of the team was there. There was Captain America, standing stoically with his legendary vibranium shield in hand. Iron Man was there, the narcissist that he was, he was waving. Hawkeye casually leaned against the side of the door, his quiver of arrows shining in the sunlight. Thor stood next to Hawkeye with his hammer Mjolnir. Dr. Bruce Banner stood in the back, out of the public eye. And Black Widow stood next to Iron Man, looking as though she wanted to punch him. Seconds later, she did, her right hand clenched in a well-practiced fist, and her fiery red hair flying.

"Ow. What the hell was that for?" Stark complained, rubbing his cheek.

"A lot of things." Agent Romanoff said. "One, you pushed me out of the pilot's seat when we got in the Quinjet. Two, you drank a glass of champagne on board the plane, and thank God it was only one glass. Three, you are an idiot. Four, you were posing heroically. This is no time to pose heroically!"

S.H.I.E.L.D's top assassin pushed her way past Iron Man towards Ms. Darvey's class. "I'm Agent Romanoff." Black Widow introduced herself. "Now, what's this about a principal who wants to take over the world?"

"Wow, Agent Romanoff. It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm a fan." Rose said politely. "Well, Rebecca overheard Mrs. Boise- that's our principal, by the way- formulating a plan to take over the world. She brainwashed five of our teachers into helping her, with promises of a continent and higher salaries."

"Well, can't argue with that." Iron Man said. "I'd do a lot of things with that kind of incentive- ow." That last 'ow' was added in because Black Widow punched him again, this time in the shoulder.

"Excuse my colleague." Romanoff said. "He's an idiot."

"Am not." Iron Man argued. "I am a genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist."

"More like crazy, narcissist and half-drunk." Black Widow joked.

"And you're a murderous, punch-happy Russian." Iron Man fired back.

"Guys, guys, truce." Captain America stepped between the quarrelling heroes. "No one's murderous, or half-drunk. Well, if I was being completely honest, one fifth-drunk, Tony. And, Natasha, you _are_ Russian... But _not_ punch-happy. Okay, maybe a little bit. You've punched Tony twice in less than ten minutes. And the way you deal with bad guys involves a lot of punching. You know, I'll just stop talking, I think I'm making things worse."

After both Black Widow and Iron Man calmed down, Captain America looked at the students. "So, how did you get Tony's number?"

Before Willem could give an answer, a crash sounded from the school. To the Avengers' surprise, and the students' horror, Mrs. Boise zoomed out on a hoverboard loaded with Gatling guns and other weaponry, followed closely by the five other teachers. The teachers were all on matching hoverboards, though theirs were slightly smaller. Ms. Darvey's hands were crackling with silvery blue lightning. Mrs. Rohan had steel ram horns on her head, honed to a deadly edge. Ms. Di Peña wore a dark ninja mask and held two shurikens in each hand. Mr. Samitch wore a white lab coat covered in memorabilia pins and held a lightsaber in one hand and a sonic screwdriver in the other. Mr. Kowalski carried only a gleaming silver trumpet.

"Avengers." Mrs. Boise said. "It's time for you to meet your match."

Thor raised his hammer and declared, "We have no match, for we are mighty."

"Bruce?" Natasha called hesitantly. "How angry are you?"

"Not enough, Nat." Dr. Banner replied. "I can't risk collateral damage right now."

"Avengers, assemble!" Captain America yelled. He looked back at the students. "Oh, and I guess students too."

"What?" Black Widow yelled. "Are you mad, Rogers? We can't endanger these kids."

"We want to fight." Serena said, and the class nodded. "We need to prove to our teacher that there is good in the world. We need to prove that she doesn't need to be bad."

"Wise words, little human." Thor said.

"Who're you calling little?" Serena growled back. "I'll have _you_ know that-"

"No one got anything good done by being hostile." Rose interjected. "So, let's stop arguing and work as a team. Isn't that what the Avengers are about?"

"Good last words." Mrs. Boise said. "Darvey, finish them off."

Ms. Darvey looked regretful as she said, "It's my class. I can't hurt them."

"They are no longer your class, they are your enemies." Mrs. Boise screeched.

Ms. Darvey raised her hands, and said, "I'm really sorry guys. But I have to do this." A burst of lightning circled the students and electrocuted them. One by one, the kids dropped, like swatted flies, to the ground. Some let out shrieks of pain as the lightning zapped them.

"No!" Black Widow cried. "Come down from your hoverboards you cowards, and let's settle this."

"Sorry to disappoint, but we have to go." Mr. Samitch said, and the teachers zoomed off.

Hawkeye fired an arrow, but it bounced off of Mr. Kowalski's hoverboard.

"You missed." Thor said, surprise evident in his voice. "You never miss."

"No, I hit. It was an arrow with a deployed tracking device." Barton replied.

Hannah was the first of the students to wake up. But when she did, she did not recognize where she was. She looked out the window of the dimly lit room and stifled a scream. _They were flying!_

"It's not a dream." Hannah murmured, brushing a strand of blonde hair away from her eyes. "I think I'm on a Quinjet."

Then she noticed a figure leaning over one of her classmates. She crept closer, and tapped the person on their shoulder.

"Hello?" Dr. Banner said.

"What's going on?" Hannah asked skeptically.

"You guys got a pretty nasty shock from that teacher of yours." he said, tying a gauze bandage around Kim's wrist. "Some of you got some burns, and Cap just asked me if I could treat them. Luckily I am a doctor.

"Need any help?" Katie asked. Apparently, she had also woken up.

"Yeah, anything you need?" Hannah said.

"I'll be fine. Maybe the others need something. Just head out that door and you'll see them." Banner replied.

"Alright, thanks, Doctor." Katie and Hannah said, walking out. When the two stepped out, they were greeted by Hawkeye.

"Hello girls. Doing alright?" he asked them.

"We're fine." Katie said.

"Need anything?" Hannah asked.

"Unless you feel like polishing explosive arrows, nothing. Thanks for offering, though." Barton said.

"Oh, okay." Hannah said. "See you later, then."

They took a couple steps when someone called their names, "Katie, Hannah, wait up." Nicole walked towards them, a white bandage roll wrapped around her leg.

"What happened to your leg?" Hannah asked.

"First-degree burn." Nicole said. "I woke up, and Dr. Banner was leaning over my leg. You can't imagine the fright I got."

The girls giggled at the little anecdote. They walked around the plane together until they saw Tony Stark rounding a corner.

"Hey. How are you?" Stark said, looking at the three of them.

"Wow, did Ms. Darvey do that to you?" Hannah said, pointing at a big bruise on Tony's forehead. "That looks painful."

"No, Natasha did. That is- Agent Romanoff. Speaking of Nat, she's worried sick." Tony commented. "It's rather out of character for her, but then again, she's always hated when kids get hurt."

"Where is she?" Katie asked.

"Piloting the plane. The cockpit is just ahead." Tony said.

The girls walked ahead to the cockpit, and knocked on the door.

"Come in." Agent Romanoff called.

They walked through the door together, and Romanoff turned the Autopilot function on.

 **Chapter 4**

"Katie, Hannah, Nicole. Are you okay?" Black Widow asked, looking them up and down.

"You remember our names? I don't think I even introduced myself." Katie said.

"Turns out Tony's database isn't completely useless." the usually serious agent smiled at them. "Did Bruce fix up the burns?"

"Yeah." Nicole said, showing the bandage on her leg.

"Ouch. Does it hurt?"

"No, not really."

"I'll tell Bruce his ointment worked, then."

"So, where are we heading?" Hannah asked.

"We're following Hawkeye's tracking signal. We're around Poland, I think." Black Widow replied.

"Poland?" Hannah gasped. "How long have we been flying?"

"About nine hours." Black Widow said.

" _Nine hours?_ We were out cold that long?" Katie said.

"Yes, it was rather harrowing to see twenty five unconscious children in the infirmary." she replied. "It was not unlike what you see after Tony has a wild party at Stark Tower."

The door opened again, and Talha, Taylor and Ajay walked in, accompanied by Tony Stark.

"Guys, you've got to see this." Talha said excitedly. "Tony's playing TETRIS, and he's already on level thirty one."

We crowded around Stark, and watched him as he flipped the blocks around. He reached level thirty seven before losing.

"Thirty seven?" Black Widow scoffed. "I can do much better than that." She snatched Tony's phone out of his hands and started a new game.

"Holy muffins." Nicole said as Romanoff sped through the first few levels like Usain Bolt on the 100 meter track.

"Do you know how horrible you are making me look, Nat?" Stark asked, grimacing. But even his annoyance couldn't mask the fact that he was impressed.

Natasha kept flying through the levels, and by the time it took for Tony to go check on Dr. Banner and come back, she was on level one hundred and thirty seven.

"I'm not sure that's entirely humanly possible." Rudaina, who had just walked in, commented.

"I knew it." Taylor laughed as Natasha beat two more levels. "TETRIS."

Black Widow paused the game, and handed the phone back to Stark. "I'd keep playing and making you look like a dunce, but we've arrived.

Black Widow turned autopilot off, and steered the plane to a clearing in the middle of a forest. When the Quinjet landed, Tony took all the students to a compartment in the plane.

"This, my friends, is my pride and joy in life. I confess that I love it almost as much as I love Pepper Potts. And that's saying something. I give you, the weapon room." Tony declared pompously as they stopped in front of a metallic black sliding door.

"And here I was, thinking it would be a minibar." Hawkeye deadpanned, much to the amusement of the others.

"Back to me!" Stark yelled, waving his hands around, and trying to get everyone's attention on him. "So, I've got some pretty sweet gadgets to hand out."

"Ooh, ooh. I want to shoot lasers out of my eyes." Willem said.

"Here." Tony Stark handed Willem a pair of glasses. Not just any glasses, but thick, nerdy glasses that were taped with duct tape on the nose.

Serena began to laugh, "What are those supposed to do, make your opponent _laugh_ to defeat?"

Willem looked at Serena through the glasses, and a laser beam shot out through the lenses, burning a hole at her feet.

"Oh, great." Black Widow said sarcastically. "We're giving untrained children high-tech focused lasers. Best idea ever."

"If you liked this invention, Nat, you'll love the next one even more." Tony declared. "Nicole, try these on." He handed her a box containing a pair of contact lenses.

"More eyewear?" Thor asked as Nicole placed them in her eyes.

"Now, concentrate, and think of the most amazing thing possible. It can be me, if you want." Tony said.

Nicole closed her eyes, and seconds later, an enormous lion with a shimmering gold mane and sapphire blue eyes appeared in the center of the room.

"Good God. What is that lion doing on board the Quinjet?" Captain America said.

"Wow. That's exactly what I envisioned." Nicole gasped. "A lion."

"Illusion lenses. As long as you concentrate, it will create the most believable illusions the world has ever, or never, seen." Stark replied.

"Incredible." Black Widow grudgingly admitted.

"Bruce helped me work out some of the kinks in the prototype." Stark said, unusually modest.

He handed out some more gadgets, like shoes that could stick to any surface, fake nails with poisoned tips, and a gauntlet that shot out energy bursts.

"Now you look like Avengers." Romanoff said proudly, looking at the students with their new gear.

"They're growing up so fast." Clint said, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye.

It was true. Together, the students looked like an elite team of teenaged agents. And, Ajay was absolutely ecstatic to finally get his own pair of brass knuckles.

"Pictures!" Tony yelled, and pulled out his phone.

"Who are you, and what have you done with Tony Stark?" Captain America laughed.

"Director Fury wants me to do some community service. You can't get any better than this." Stark said. "You should probably get a picture too."

"Fury hasn't asked me to do any community service." Captain America replied smugly.

"I should get a photo as well." Dr. Banner said sheepishly, pulling out a small silver camera.

Rudaina asked wryly, "So, are we your new community service project?"

Dexter grinned and pushed his way to the front of the class, elbowing everyone aside. "Paparazzi!" he cried, putting his hand to his forehead. "No more pictures, please."

This pushed the class over the edge, and they started to laugh hysterically. Willem pretended to faint into Keegan, who stuck bunny ears over Julian's head. Hannah, Nicole, Rudaina, Katie and Jennifer were doing an impromptu cancan, while Will tried to do a backflip and just ended up knocking Taylor over. It was pure madness.

"Hopeless." Black Widow tried to stifle a laugh as Hawkeye gleefully joined the cancan line. "Alright, you misfits. We've got a job to do. Pack up your gear and let's get moving."

Everyone crept along the top of a sheer-faced cliff. One misstep, and they would end up falling to their graves.

"Where're we going?" Serena asked Hawkeye, as she clung to the side.

"According to the tracker I installed, the teachers have taken refuge in some old castle." he replied, fiddling with the GPS.

"A castle? Which one? There are lots of castles in Poland." Nathan asked.

"Pieskowa Skala, I think." Hawkeye said, pronouncing it _pie-skowa_.

" _Pi-eh-skowa_. Not _pie-skowa_! This was the home of royalty, not bakers." Nicole joked.

"Bakers?" Julian asked, not understanding the joke. Then, it sank in. "Oh. Bakers. Pie. Ha-ha."

"Oh, come on. Now you're making me hungry." Kim said under her breath.

The minutes ticked by as they moved forward. Then, Pieskowa Skala came into view. It was majestic, just like one of Disney's fairy-tale castles. The walls were spotless beige with deep red roofing, and below were gardens of bright yellow and burgundy flowers. And it was situated on an impossibly green cliff face.

"No way." Megan breathed. "It's incredible."

"Indeed." Thor said. "As magnificent as Asgard's finest castles."

"Finally, something's better than Asgard." Tony said.

"Be quiet, I detect movement in the castle." Black Widow whispered. "Jennifer, now would be a good time to use those x-ray goggles."

"Done." Jennifer replied, turning them on. "They're in the lower level. Unprepared, it looks like. Should we spring a sneak attack on all of them, or take them out one at a time?"

"One at a time." Cap said, ever the strategist. "It'll confuse them if one by one, their teammates start disappearing. Plus, it will leave your principal vulnerable."

"Makes sense." Felix said. "Who do we take out first, then?"

"Whoever will take the bait." Captain America replied.

 **Chapter 5**

 _This is the life._ Ms. Di Peña thought to herself, taking a large sip of her tea. Tea in a luxurious palace in an idyllic country, with no annoying students bugging her about the answer to question number five, part b in the math textbook. _I'd take this any day over being annoyed by those pesky eighth graders. They call my math classes Hangry Lady Screaming Hour. I am NOT hangry. Well, not all the time._ Ms. Di Peña thought to herself.

But as she sipped her tea, Ms. Di Peña felt something was off. Something just wasn't right. She looked around her. It all seemed normal. Fireplace was full of burning embers, the paintings were exquisite, Keegan Reardon was hovering in the window in an Iron Man suit, there was a cat curled up in one of the chairs. _Wait, what?_ She looked out the window, and Keegan waved.

"Can I ever get away from this kid?" Ms. Di Peña screamed, and pulled out her hoverboard. She fearlessly crashed through the window and pulled out her shuriken. "Prepare to be... oh, what's the word? Anointed? No. Annihilated? Yes. PREPARE TO BE ANNIHILATED!"

"Can't catch me." Keegan said, and zoomed off, sticking out his tongue.

Ms. Di Peña gritted her teeth and flew after him on the hoverboard, throwing a shuriken when she got close.

"Ha. You think a shuriken will stop me?" Keegan laughed. Just then the shuriken exploded. "If I wasn't running away from you, I'd ask for one of those. Yikes."

They kept up the chase, and soon entered a forest. It became much harder for both Ms. Di Peña and Keegan to maneuver through the branches. But seconds later, Keegan had ran into a tree. Ms. Di Peña approached him, readying a shuriken.

"Now would be a good time to say any final words, Reardon." Ms. Di Peña said, a maniacal grin lighting up her face.

"Meet the hammer." Keegan said.

 _What?_ Ms. Di Peña thought. _Hammer? I thought that only Thor carried a hammer..._

As she completed her thought, the Thunder God himself plunged down from a tree, and tackled Ms. Di Peña.

"I usually do not tackle ladies, but I must make an exception for you." Thor sighed.

"Let me go, you blond-haired buffoon!" Ms. Di Peña yelled.

Thor shrugged and slugged her with Mjolnir.

"Overkill, much?" Keegan said, looking at Ms. Di Peña.

"Nah, its fine." Black Widow said, dropping agilely from a nearby tree. "This is how Asgardians get their wives."

Thor tried to swat Natasha, but she dodged him easily.

"Good job, Thor, Keegan. Head back." Captain America's voice came over their earpieces. "Widow, can you carry their teacher?"

"Oh, make me do it, why don't you?" Natasha complained, but picked up Ms. Di Peña. She wasn't very careful, though. Once or twice, Ms. Di Peña's head would smack against a tree trunk while Nat walked.

"Excellent work, everyone." Iron Man said, looking at Ms. Di Peña's unconscious form. "So, what do we do with her?"

"Toss her in the Quinjet holding cell." Dr. Banner suggested. Captain America seconded Banner's decision, as Black Widow put handcuffs on Ms. Di Peña's wrists. Widow proceeded to carry Ms. Di Peña out, returning a couple minutes later.

"Well, that was interesting." Black Widow commented. "The teacher woke up, and told me that she felt she knew me. Personally. Creepy, right?"

"Not really." Katie commented. "We always thought she was a spy or something, she had this hammer thingy with like five screwdrivers inside of it. Long story, involving a semi-broken scientific calculator. Don't ask."

"I won't." Romanoff replied. "I'm already quite confused."

"Join the club." Hawkeye said.

The Avengers laughed, and then an awkward silence came over them. They sat there for a little bit, Thor applying some ointment onto a scratch on his arm, and Tony Stark checking his phone. Then, a splintering crash broke the silence. It was Mr. Kowalski, who had just blown though one of the Quinjet's windows on his hoverboard.

"You're going to pay for that damage." Tony warned, pieces of the Iron Man suit already flying towards him.

Mr. Kowalski just grinned and raised his silver trumpet to his lips. He played a note so ear-shattering, it broke _all_ the windows in the jet.

"Oh, come on." Iron Man grumbled. "You just had to go and do that, didn't you?"

Suddenly, Mr. Kowalski zoomed forward into the crowd, scattering the students, and knocking over Jules.

"Ouch!" Jules yelled, crouched on the ground holding her leg. "I thought I was your favourite clarinet player in grade eight band."

"Cover me and Jules." Rose said to Captain America, as she rushed to Jules. "Luckily I'm trained in basic first aid." she told Jules as she began to inspect her knee. "Well, I think it's only sprained. I'll immobilize it, put on some ice, and you'll need to keep it elevated. You'll be fine, it's not bad."

"Thanks, Rose." Jules said as her knee was tended to.

But Mr. Kowalski agilely slipped around Captain America and held a blow dart in his hand, poised towards Rose and Jules. "Which one, Cap? The junior doctor, or clarinet player?" he taunted.

Rose took a deep breath and moved in front of Jules. "It's considered quite rude to attack an injured person." she whispered hesitantly. The class looked at each other and nodded, joining their classmate to form a protective barrier around Jules.

"Just try us." William said, his voice confident.

"Give it your best shot." Ajay said.

Mr. Kowalski stared. He was dumbstruck by the class's move to protect Jules. Quicker than he could've seen it coming, Black Widow leaped up and kicked him off his hoverboard. He fell anticlimactically, slumping against the side of the Quinjet. "Ughhh." he mumbled as he went unconscious.

"Better take these." Hawkeye said, quickly grabbing Mr. Kowalski's trumpet and blow darts. "It's pretty high-tech. He can use his trumpet to fire the blow darts."

"Oh, there's a flash bang grenade in here." Black Widow said, pulling it out, and stowing it away somewhere.

"Widow, you are stealing private property." Captain America reprimanded.

"That sounds _so_ wrong." Iron Man snickered, receiving a stomp on the foot from Agent Romanoff.

"I collect these things. Do you have a problem with that?" Natasha asked.

"No, ma'am." Captain America said, rightly guessing that saying otherwise would be a bad decision.

Black Widow walked over to Tony's computer, and scrolled through some pages. "Where is the information on our targets? Shawarma restaurants in New York, electricity bills, google search for cute puppies, BOZHE MOY! Tony, you creep."

Serena and Keegan tried to look at the screen, but Black Widow quickly turned it off, mumbling something about unsuitable information for young eyes.

"Ooh, let me guess. It was an email from Tony to Pepper. Or a text conversation." Rebecca laughed.

"Dear Tony," Keegan ad-libbed in a high voice, "I love you so, so much. Everything about you is perfect, except your snore, which sounds like bagpipes being thrown in a paper-shredder."

"Pepper, the following information is unsuitable for young eyes. Enough said." Serena replied in a deep baritone.

Dr. Banner chuckled at this, and looked at Tony, raising his eyebrows. "Tony, the secrets you have..."

"Be quiet." Tony said, glaring at everyone. "And, Serena, I do NOT speak like that."

 **Chapter 6**

Nicole looked at Vivian and Black Widow and mouthed _coast is clear._ They crept forward, silent and swift as the wind, but arguably much more deadly- especially with a trained assassin. Vivian signaled for the others to come to her.

"What's our strategy?" Vivian asked Natasha Romanoff.

"We'll surprise him with an illusion, then try and take him off his guard." Widow replied. "If all else fails, we fight him hand-to-hand."

They moved out, running towards the castle. Jennifer had told them she saw Mr. Samitch in the garden, so they climbed up the gate leading there. Well, Vivian and Agent Romanoff climbed. Nicole just opened the gate after deactivating an alarm, and walked through.

"Hide." Romanoff whispered urgently. "I see him."

The three of them rushed behind an elaborately trimmed topiary, and Nicole put on her illusion contacts. In front of Mr. Samitch appeared a terrifying dragon, who snarled and roared at him. Its scales were the colour of fire, and its wings were the size of monster trucks. Its eyes gleamed like twin amber stones.

"Agh!" Mr. Samitch cried, whipping out his red-bladed lightsaber. He brandished it at the ferocious beast. "Stay back, or I'll turn you into dragon charcuterie."

The dragon growled, which if you translated into English would be roughly something like: _Why is puny human threatening me with glow stick?_

Mr. Samitch let out a guttural cry and rushed at it, slicing at the dragon with his lightsaber. Well, lightsabers don't really do much on illusions, but the dragon flickered. That was all it took for Mr. Samitch to realize he'd been tricked.

"Who's there?" he asked.

"Do something." Vivian told Nicole. "Anything."

"Anything, you say?" Nicole said, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't like that look in your eye." Nat said.

"Oh, it's a good plan. You won't like it, though." Nicole replied, leaning up to whisper something in Black Widow's ear.

Mr. Samitch stood stoically in the garden, waving his lightsaber. Then, a bush rustled and someone stepped out. You could've knocked Mr. Samitch over with a feather, he was completely stunned. In front of him stood Natasha Romanoff, resplendent in a sleeveless black dress.

"Hello there." Romanoff said. "What's a guy like you doing in a place like this?"

"Duh... ah... er... hi." Mr. Samitch stammered, his cheeks turning firetruck red.

Natasha walked towards him, a smile on her face.

"C-c-can I-uh-um-I-er." Mr. Samitch tried to form a coherent sentence, but failed miserably.

When she reached him, she stood in front of him, her hands on her hips. Mr. Samitch's eyes widened, trying to say something intelligent, but not being able to. Suddenly, something knocked him over from behind. He whipped around, trying to see the face of his attacker. He gasped, and finally was able to say something. "But, how?"

Poised in front of him were Nicole, Vivian and Natasha Romanoff in one of her trademark catsuits. The other Agent Romanoff flickered and vanished. Vivian leaped at Mr. Samitch, and he dodged barely. Vivian recovered and tried to throw a punch, but he pulled out his lightsaber again, and turned it on.

"Widow, do you need backup?" Captain America's voice came over their earpieces.

"No, we'll manage." Black Widow replied, jumping to avoid a swish of Mr. Samitch's lightsaber. "Don't distract me while I'm fighting, Cap." Romanoff ran at Mr. Samitch, flipping head over heels and her feet nailing him in the chest. He staggered back a couple steps, and regained his balance. He swung the lightsaber and Vivian shoved him to the side. And where was Nicole during all of this? Trying to read a book.

"What on Earth are you doing?" Vivian yelled, evading another one of Mr. Samitch's lightsaber swings. "Help us."

"Hold on." Nicole said, turning a couple pages. "Ah-ha." She rushed at Mr. Samitch, her brown hair catching the wind current. Her leg lashed out and she kicked him square on his kneecap, followed by a blow to the head, and he crumpled. "Anatomy book." she explained. "Most people are extremely sensitive around their kneecaps."

Black Widow kneeled down and said, "Anything to say, Samitch?"

They waited, looking at Mr. Samitch. Finally he spoke, "Can I have your autograph?" and fell down, he was out cold.

Vivian handed Agent Romanoff a sticky note with a pen and Natasha scribbled _Defeated by the Black Widow._ Vivian took the pen and added _and two grade eight students._ Widow stuck it on Mr. Samitch's forehead, satisfied with their work.

"Mission completed, we're ready to go." Widow said into her transceiver.

The Quinjet arrived, and Tony came down to get Mr. Samitch. He didn't ask about the sticky note, he knew it would probably be very complicated to explain.

But, when all seemed calm, there was a yell and a shriek from the jet.

"Is that Dexter?" Vivian asked, worried.

"More importantly, is that _Bruce_?" Romanoff said, a look of pure terror crossing her face. "Oh, no. This will end badly."

Dr. Banner had Dexter cornered, and he was furious. The look in his eyes made the class want to run away screaming like preschool kids. But, they were concerned for Dexter, so they stayed.

"Bruce, what's going on?" Natasha asked, trying to separate him from Dexter.

"He took something of mine." Bruce growled, uncharacteristically elbowing past his teammate.

"What did he take?" Romanoff questioned, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"My. Personal. Supply. Of. Ginger ale." Dr. Banner replied.

The class wanted to laugh so badly, but they knew that it would be the last thing they would ever do. Instant green rage monster, just add laughter.

"Okay, okay. Calm down, Bruce." Natasha said gently. "He'll pay you back."

"Yeah." Dexter piped up. "Anything you want."

Bruce looked at Dexter, and began to laugh, "I got you."

"What, now?" Dexter asked, confused.

"I was kind of ticked off that you took my can of ginger ale, but I wasn't really that mad. I just felt that you needed to know not to take my stuff." Banner explained, the class finally letting out their laughter.

"Dude, that was hilarious." Keegan gave Dr. Banner a high-five.

"An Oscar-winning performance if I ever saw one." Rudaina added.

"So, I can keep the ginger ale?" Dexter asked, clueless.

"Is he kidding? I can't tell." Dr. Banner said, rolling his eyes.

The excitement over, Tony walked over to the Avengers.

"I'm hungry." Tony declared loudly.

"Great, go eat something." Hawkeye replied.

"No, let's get perogies. I don't know what they are, but they sound good." Tony said.

"Perogies," Willem explained, "Are the best things in the universe, full of cheesy, potato-y goodness. You can get them with practically anything, onions, bacon, mushrooms, or blueberries."

"Midgardian food never ceases to amaze me." Thor said wistfully.

"There's a nearby place that serves perogies. I got the coordinates, we can go now." Stark declared.

"Now?" Natasha asked. "Tony, in case you haven't noticed, we're fighting a battle."

"Yeah, but I'm _hungry_." Tony said, as though it was a completely legitimate excuse.

"You are a nightmare sometimes, Stark." Natasha said, her hands on her temples.

"But a very endearing one, don't you think?" Stark replied audaciously.

"No." the entire class chorused.

"Endearing would be on the bottom of my _Words to Describe Tony Stark_ list." Katie teased.

"You have a _Words to Describe Tony Stark_ list?" Tony asked.

"How do you put up with this guy?" Julian questioned the Avengers rhetorically, already knowing their answers.

 **Chapter 7**

So, Tony set a course for the restaurant, and off the Quinjet flew. Five minutes later, they landed behind a busy Polish restaurant. The Avengers and students walked over to the restaurant, and when they entered, they received what could only be described as a hero's welcome. About five waitresses screamed when they saw Tony Stark, and then they screamed again when they saw Thor.

"The illustrious Avengers. What brings you to my humble restaurant?" the owner asked, shaking Stark's hand.

"He was hungry." Ajay stated, pointing to Tony.

The restaurant owner realised then that there were twenty five children next to the Avengers. He blinked a couple times, and then scratched his balding head. "And who are they?"

"Humans, last time I checked." Julian joked.

"We're Canadians, eh." Praveen said, and everyone groaned.

"Since when did you start to enforce the belief that Canadians say 'eh' all the time?" Rebecca asked. "Next thing we know, you'll be saying we drink maple syrup and ride polar bears."

"We don't ride polar bears?" Dexter said, feigning shock.

"We're a class of grade eights from Toronto, Canada. We're just helping out." Vivian explained matter-of-factly.

"Ah." The owner said. "I'll give you all the best table in the house, lovely view."

The owner called a waitress to lead them to a table right next to the window, where they could see the cobblestone streets of the old town. Thor helped connect a couple tables end to end, so everyone could sit together. When they took their seats, everyone ordered a plateful of perogies.

"So, what now?" Rudaina asked. "What'll we do while we wait? I assume thirty one plates of perogies will take some time to make."

"No kidding, Sherlock." Hannah said.

"I've always wondered, who'd be the best arm wrestler in the Avengers?" Johan said, trying to start a conversation.

"Me, that's who." Tony declared. "I could beat you all with no problem."

"Is that a challenge, Man of Iron?" Thor said, rolling up his sleeve and flexing a bicep. The mere action caused a nearby waitress to faint.

"Oh, yes it is." Tony said, grinning. "Come on, Goldilocks. Let's do this."

Natasha looked at them and rolled her eyes. "Boys will always be boys." she muttered to the girls, and they laughed.

Tony and Thor locked arms, and they started to wrestle. They were pretty evenly matched, until Tony cried, "Are those Poptarts?"

"What? Where?" Thor asked. The moment of distraction caused him to lose focus, and Tony slammed his arm down.

"A coward's move." Thor cried. "Man of Iron, you are despicable."

"Yeah, yeah." Tony said. "Next."

Tony took down Dr. Banner by telling him Agent Romanoff was looking at him, and while Clint Barton has impeccable aim, he never was one for contests of strength. Steve declined politely, saying that he didn't care much for arm wrestling. But then, all the girls looked at Natasha. Tony got the message.

"Hey, Nat. I have another round in me." Tony said.

"This is ridiculous." Natasha complained.

"Please."

"Oh, my. The egomaniac said _please_."

"Seriously, Nat. Or are you scared of being beaten by the amazing Tony Stark?"

That did it for Natasha. "See how you feel after I've beaten you." she said, amidst the cheers of the girls.

"Bring it on, kid." Tony said.

"Ooh." the class said, waiting for Natasha's reply.

"Oh, I'll bring it. I hope you've brought painkillers, metal-man. Because I'm going to melt you down."

"Burn." Talha said. "Literally."

By now, a crowd of restaurant-goers had gathered around Natasha and Tony, waiting for the epic match. Tony locked arms with Natasha.

"Ready?" Katie yelled, who was playing referee. "Go!"

It was brutal, and over in seconds. Natasha twisted Tony's wrist and slammed his arm to the table.

"OOOOOOWWWWW!" Tony screamed, trying very hard not to swear. "Nat, I think- OW- you dislocated my arm."

"Calm down, princess." Romanoff joked. "I think you just strained something."

"Yeah, Tasha's right." Clint said, looking at Tony's arm. "Nothing major."

"Seriously, though. Nat, that hurts." Tony groaned. "Anyone got some ice?" A waitress quickly ran to him with a bucket full of ice, and he instantaneously slammed his arm in all the way up to his elbow. "Better, thanks."

"Well, that was exciting." another waitress said, bringing the perogies. Ten other waitresses followed close behind with other plates. "Ms. Romanoff, you are quite a talent."

"Thank you." Natasha replied modestly, reaching for her fork and knife.

"Next time, go against Rose." Dexter added.

There were a few moments of silence before they all began to eat. But, when Tony put his fork into his mouth and tried his first perogie, it was like a baby discovering television.

"Wow, that's good." Tony said. "Really, really good. Like, I can't even describe how good it is."

"Poptarts have no meaning to me anymore." Thor declared shoveling more perogies into his mouth.

"What do you think would be the craziest perogie ever?" Talha wondered aloud.

"Poptarts perogies." Nathan answered.

"Pickle perogies." Katie said, trying to best him.

"Tuna perogies." Taylor suggested.

"Eww!" the class yelled.

"Um, what about sausage perogies?" Felix suggested.

"Oh, shrimp perogies." Rebecca said.

"Fudge perogies." Barton added, joining in.

The debate lasted for the better part of twenty minutes, and by the end of it, they concluded that fudge perogies would be the best.

"Just imagine the gooey fudge oozing out when you take a bite." William said wistfully. "And if the dough for the pasta was sweet... perfection."

"Yeah." Tony agreed. "I feel like something else to drink. Anyone else?"

"God, no." Hawkeye said. "If you have _another_ drink, I will ask Tasha to actually dislocate your arm."

"And we will give you nothing but tuna perogies for the rest of your life." Rose added.

"Now that's how we should've done torture." Natasha chuckled. "The Red Room has absolutely nothing on us."

The table grew silent at Romanoff's mention of the Red Room. Everyone knew that the agent harboured some bitter memories of her old training academy. Bruce exchanged a kind glance with Natasha, and she quirked a lip. Apparently, she was trying to shake the memories off, to joke about them instead of cry about them.

The rest of lunch was uneventful, with a couple patrons and staff asking for autographs. One little kid also asked for all of 8F's autographs, which made them all ecstatic.

"You've made it to the big time, guys." Tony joked. "Kids are asking for your autograph. Better start practicing how you'll sign their memorabilia. The autograph shouldn't take long to write and it should look cool."

Finished signing an autograph for a young girl with light brown pigtails, Tony called for the bill. If the Avengers assumed they were going to have a peaceful lunch, they were completely wrong. Suddenly, the wall of the restaurant trembled and quaked, and then burst apart. A petite woman stood amidst the destruction. She looked completely normal, except for the ram's horns bursting from her black hair.

"Mrs. Rohan." Praveen gasped. "What on Earth is on her head?"

"Are those made of vibranium?" Steve gaped, recognizing the nearly indestructible metal.

"Yeah." Dr. Banner whispered, breathing in and out deeply, attempting to control his emotions. "It's definitely vibranium, one hundred percent."

"Bruce, don't you dare Hulk out on us." Natasha said urgently, gripping her good friend's hand.

Mrs. Rohan stepped towards the Avengers, overturning a table as she walked towards them. Every step she took slightly shook the floor. "Avengers and students." she smirked. "I am giving you a chance to surrender. Give up now or _die_ painfully."

"I'd rather die peacefully in my sleep surrounded by my family and friends at the good old age of ninety seven. So thanks, but no thanks." Hawkeye quipped, while nocking an arrow in his bow.

"Well, then." Mrs. Rohan said. "I'll make sure to leave some flowers at your grave." And then she charged.

"Since when did you become a trash-talker?" Hannah yelled as she helped Thor flip the table over for protection. Mrs. Rohan's horns stuck straight into the cherry wood.

"Not the tables." the restaurant owner groaned. He had spent quite a lot of money on those furnishings, and now they were destroyed.

"Now, let's talk this out, Mrs. Rohan." Johan said nervously. "No horns, okay?"

Mrs. Rohan just snarled and ran at them again, and Captain America parried her horns with his shield. There was an almighty _clang_ and both teacher and Avenger were thrown backwards. Megan and Kim rushed to help Steve up.

"Are you okay?" Megan worried.

"Yeah." Cap groaned. "I'm alive."

"On your six." Hawkeye said and the three of them ducked as Barton fired an arrow at Mrs. Rohan. It glanced off her horns and she looked infuriated. Black Widow snuck up behind Mrs. Rohan and electrocuted her with a Widow's Bite. It stunned her, but only for a few seconds. Mrs. Rohan flipped over and struck Agent Romanoff in the gut.

"Ugh." Natasha groaned as she staggered back a couple steps, and Dr. Banner quickly rushed over to her and supported her. "Thanks." she told Bruce, rushing back into the battle. Unfortunately Dr. Banner was looking a little green.

"Agent Romanoff," Keegan called, "Your boyfriend doesn't look so good."

"He's not my- oh, forget it." Nat said, dodging Mrs. Rohan's horns. "A little bit busy right now. Anyone want to make sure the Other Guy doesn't make an appearance?"

"I'll try." Nicole called, running to the disgruntled doctor.

 **Chapter 8**

Captain America watched Nicole's back as she walked through the raging battle. Edging forward nervously, she sat down next to Dr. Banner.

"Are you sure she'll be okay?" Hawkeye yelled to Black Widow, who was busy side-stepping attacks from Mrs. Rohan. "It's pretty hard to deal with Banner's temper tantrums."

"Oh, Nicole will be fine." Black Widow said noncommittally. "If Bruce transforms, I'll step in."

`Meanwhile, Nicole was trying hard to keep Dr. Banner's cool. "Hey, Dr. Banner. So, what's up?" He growled at her, and she jumped back. "I know it's a bit crazy down here, but let's just imagine none of it is happening. We're somewhere else, somewhere wonderful and peaceful. Where no one can harm us, no one can reach us. It's just the two of us talking to each other. Well, I'm the one talking. But don't let this craziness get to you, okay?"

Dr. Banner mumbled a half audible _okay_. Then he looked at the girl sitting next to him. "What is wrong with me?"

"Nothing, Doctor. You're a good person."

"But I'm a monster. I've destroyed so much and hurt so many."

"No, you're not. You are such a kind-hearted person, and you shouldn't let your alter-ego get to you. You became the Hulk because you saved someone's life. The Other Guy is not a pure destructive force, he has goodness in him." Nicole cajoled. "Everyone can see it. Steve can see it. Nick Fury can see it. Tony can, even though he's kind of a jerk slash narcissist. Natasha can see every single particle of that good force."

Bruce blushed when Agent Romanoff was mentioned. "But I don't want to hurt her from being close to her. I could never be around Natasha without hurting her."

"But don't you see it? Natasha loves you for who you are. Honestly, the Other Guy gives you connections to her that no one else will ever have with her."

"Really? You think?" Bruce asked, shocked.

"Of course. You should see the way she looks at you sometimes." Nicole replied cheekily.

"I think I understand now. Thank you." Dr. Banner smiled at her, all traces of green vanished from his face.

"No problem." Nicole said. She scribbled down something on a napkin and handed it to Dr. Banner. She then turned away, rushing back to help her classmates.

Bruce looked at the writing and smiled, for she had written a haiku:

 _The greatest man has_

 _The power to take setbacks_

 _And make them a strength._

He folded the paper twice, and tucked it in his pocket.

Having run out of arrows, Hawkeye was panicking. If this crazy woman could deflect and dodge his arrows, he didn't know what else to do. Rose threw him a fork, which he caught easily. _Oh, I see._ Barton thought to himself, and threw it at Mrs. Rohan. It struck her directly in her left foot, and she howled in pain.

"Thanks, Rose." he called.

"Arrows, forks, same thing." Rose said.

Thor raised his hammer and was about to summon lighting, when Jules grabbed his arm and said, "Wait, if you do that, you'll blow the roof off this place. Literally."

"Is that a problem, Lady Jules?" Thor asks.

"Um, yes. Unless you want Tony to pay these guys a major amount of money, please no hammers." Jules replied.

"Fine." Thor grumbled, and settled for using his own two fists.

Johan dashed to Ajay, who was next to Captain America. "Hey, I think I know how to get Mrs. Rohan out of commission.

"How?" Ajay asked, narrowly being missed by a flying table. "Please tell me now, or I am probably going to get injured in the next ten minutes."

"You see that kitschy carpet over there?" Johan pointed to a hideous red and gold carpet under a pile of broken chairs. "We get Mrs. Rohan to step on it, pull it out from under her and Captain America clonks her on the head with his shield."

"Good plan." Captain America complimented Johan. "You may very well have a future in tactics."

Ajay easily pulled the carpet out from under the pile of chairs, and he brought it over to Johan, brushing some dust off of it. "What now, Johan?"

"Put it close to this chair. I'm going to hide under the chair and yank when Mrs. Rohan steps on it, okay?" Johan said.

"Alright." Ajay agreed, putting the carpet down. Johan clambered under the chair and prepared to launch a sneak attack on his former teacher.

"Hey, Mrs. Rohan." Ajay waved, getting the angry teacher's attention. "Your science class has the lowest average in the entire school, and guess whose fault it is?"

Mrs. Rohan hurtled like a kamikaze at Ajay. As soon as one of her sensible black shoes touched the carpet, Johan pulled, taking Mrs. Rohan down. She tried to get back up, but Captain America swung his shield and she collapsed. Hawkeye ambled over to the heroic trio, took a flower from a nearby cracked vase and tossed it at Mrs. Rohan.

"Guess I'll be the one leaving flowers." Clint said.

"You won't get away with this." Mrs. Rohan said hoarsely. "The Schooling Squadron will reign supreme for eternity."

"Sure, whatever." Tony said. "Now, don't we have two more people to take care of?"

"Yeah." Johan added. "I think we should get going. We've got a world to save."

"Who would have guessed?" Julian joked, and they all exited the practically destroyed restaurant, Tony throwing a couple hundred dollar bills on the table. He knew it was way over the amount that the bill asked for, but adding the cost of the damage, it would perfectly cover it.

As the Quinjet took off, Rose decided to take a walk. She paced around aimlessly for a couple minutes, and then decided to stop by the cockpit. There, she saw Tony piloting the jet, while Steve sat on the ground, flipping through a phone.

"Hi Steve." Rose said. "What're you doing?"

"Well," Steve began, "I'm trying to learn how to use a phone, so I practiced using the camera. Want to see?"

"Sure." Rose said enthusiastically, taking the phone from Captain America. She began to flip through the photos. "Steve, these are amazing." she gushed. Rose didn't know how, but there were pictures of the Avengers and 8F. She saw pictures of Thor laughing as Ajay tried to pick up his hammer, Hawkeye teaching Talha to shoot a bow and arrow with near-perfect accuracy, Dr. Banner toasting Dexter with a can of ginger ale, Tony Stark showing Praveen, Serena, Megan and Willem how his suit worked and Black Widow instructing a group of girls how to fly the Quinjet. She even saw a picture of herself holding Cap's shield. She had wanted to see how it felt to hold the shield, and was sure no one was around to watch or judge her.

"When did you even take these?" Rose asked.

"Just whenever." Steve said, smiling as Rose flipped to a picture of Natasha holding up her TETRIS high score (an impressive 842).

"They're really good." Rose enthused, moving to the next photo. "The others would love these."

"I know this is an odd question, Rose, but what do you see when you look at these pictures?" the Captain asked.

"I see a family. A crazy family, but I wouldn't have it any other way." Rose replied, handing the phone back to Steve.

Steve took the phone and looked at it. Twenty five bright faces stared back, smiles alighting each one of their faces. "You know, they'll miss you when we finish this mission."

"Huh? Who?"

"We will. I think that we've bonded with you guys in a way. Tony will miss having someone to retell his 'daring exploits'. Bruce will miss showing you guys his experiments. Natasha will miss all the girls, according to her there aren't enough back at S.H.I.E.L.D. Hawkeye will miss you guys because you laugh at every one of his jokes. Oh, and Thor thinks you teach _him_ so much."

"And what about you, Captain?"

"Me?" Steve asked. "I'll miss you all because- like you said- we're a family of sorts now."

Rose gave Steve a sisterly hug. "We'll miss the Avengers too." They sat down together, looking at the pictures, pointing at their favourites, and snickering at the more ridiculous ones (which mostly involved Tony being stupid, among other things).

"Look at these." Steve mused. "All the things we've done."

"All the perogies we've eaten." Rose giggled, glancing at a picture of Thor eating lunch.

Rose absentmindedly started tapping out the rhythm of the Cup Song on the floor. "When I'm gone..." she sang quietly. "You're gonna miss me when I'm gone."

Steve smiled at her. "We sure will, Rose. We'll miss you all when you're gone."

Unexpectedly, a red light started to flash, and Tony turned around from the pilot's seat. "Guys, something's wrong here. I think that we've got some trouble."

"What?" Steve asked.

"The principal's just fired at us. I think the jet is malfunctioning." Tony said.

 **Chapter 9**

"What is going on?" Serena screeched as she ran into the cockpit, Jules and Will close behind her.

"The plane's been hit, I think." Tony stated, trying to remain calm.

"We're all going to die." Will lamented, clutching Jules.

"Not today. Death isn't scheduled for at least a couple more decades." Steve added, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Well, it looks like we may have to move the date up." Will said, rushing to hide under a table. "Help!"

Katie, William, Nicole, Hannah and Jennifer straggled inside, trying to keep their balance.

"Ugh, I don't feel so good." Hannah moaned, turning a shade of green to rival Dr. Banner. She sat down and started to take deep breaths.

Jennifer started to stutter, "W-what are we going to do? I-I saw sparks j-just outside the infirmary w-window."

"Yeah." William added. "We all saw them."

"Wait, what were you doing in the infirmary?" Tony asked.

"They were helping me." Dr. Banner said, stumbling in. "I was working on an experiment and the four of them were just getting me some supplies and things. There was suddenly a disturbance outside the plane, and then it started to shake. Unfortunately, we nearly caused a dangerous chemical reaction. Fortunately we saved the experiment from being destroyed- and taking half the plane with it."

"What chemical reaction?" Stark inquired.

"It was a solution for killing the infection in a wound." Bruce replied. "And I was sure that nothing would agitate the chemicals in it. Well, I was _not_ prepared for a jet malfunction."

"Any damage?" Tony questioned.

"Um. So..." Banner stalled.

"We blew up the table." William said for him.

"You WHAT?" Stark screeched.

"Okay, so let's discuss who pays for the table later and deal with our ongoing threat now." Natasha strode to them, cutting Tony off just in time.

"But it was a nice table." Tony said.

"Who cares about the table?" Romanoff yelled. "Just get us to safety."

"Okay, okay." Stark said. "Hold on to something. We're going for a ride."

"Whoa, take it easy." Bruce grumbled as Tony did a daring nosedive.

"Let me pilot." Natasha gasped as he leveled out, a little too fast for anyone's liking.

"Slow down, nutjob. Do you want to get us killed?" Hawkeye shouted, as Tony pushed the plane even faster.

"If I go any slower, the crazy lady on our tail will catch us." Tony shrieked, as something exploded behind them. The students rushed to check the window, and they saw Mrs. Boise on her hoverboard. She grinned as she saw them looking, and shot a missile at the Quinjet.

"Oh my God. Get us out of here." Kim muttered, as she stepped back from the window.

"GO, GO, GO." Vivian screamed as the missile exploded right next to them, throwing the plane off course.

"Nat, how good is your evasive driving?" Stark asked.

"I'm an assassin, I had twelve courses on evasive maneuvers in jets, cars, trucks, speedboats and motorcycles. And I aced all of them." Black Widow said.

"Spare me the story and take over." Tony said, moving aside. "I'm getting my suit on."

"I shall help take out this fiendish lady." Thor declared, pulling out Mjolnir.

"Us too." Will and Taylor said. They both activated the _hover_ function on their utility boots.

Captain America looked at them in surprise. "Are you sure? Because you can, I don't know, get killed. Or at least break something."

"We've got _shield_ functions on our boots as well." Will said. "We'll be fine."

"Alright." Cap replied. "But I hope you've got insurance."

Thor, Iron Man, Will and Taylor flew out of the plane at top speed. Taylor pointed to a figure in the distance.

"She's there." Taylor pointed. "What's our plan of attack?"

"We attack." Iron Man stated, flying towards the rogue principal.

"Where have I heard that before?" Will asked Taylor, heading after Stark.

"Actually, I do have a plan." Iron Man said. "We lead her away from the jet. Our top priority is keeping everyone else safe. Once we reach a distance far enough, we go on the offense."

"Good plan." Thor said. He threw Mjolnir at Mrs. Boise, and it clipped the side of her hoverboard. She spun out of control, windmilling her arms to keep her balance. Her pale blonde hair whipped around her head, and when she stopped spinning, a look of malice crossed her face.

"Now you've got me ticked off..." she murmured, zooming towards the four.

"Move it." Iron Man yelled, as they sped away from the jet.

They flew through the impossibly blue sky, zipping over forests, farms and meadows.

"Yahoo!" Will cheered as he burst through a cloud. "I've always wanted to do that."

"Not the time, Will." Iron Man replied, pointing at Mrs. Boise. "Fun later."

Will frowned, but kept flying. Soon, they reached a lake, where Stark beckoned them to touch down.

"Far enough." Iron Man said. "Nat will have gotten the jet to safety by now."

"Look out." Taylor hollered. "She's coming, and _fast_."

Mrs. Boise emerged from a patch of clouds at full tilt, her Gatling guns already firing.

"Oh, man." Taylor said. "Will, don't fly at her. She's armed."

Taylor sighed exasperatedly as Will paid no heed to his warning, instead pulling a gun out of a holster and readying to shoot.

"So, how do I do this?" Will asked.

"Are you kidding?" Tony yelled. "Okay, no you're not. So this is a Sonic Wavelength Amplifier Gun, I just call it the SWAGun, because it's awesome. You point it at your adversary and yell into its speakers. Simple enough, okay?"

Will raised the gun and held it steady. "AAAAAARGHHHHH!" he yelled into the speakers, and was shocked at what came out. The sound of his already loud scream had become deafening, spreading across the meadow and towards Mrs. Boise. She recoiled immediately with a screech almost as loud.

"That's horrible, stop it this instant." the irritable principal complained.

"You aren't my boss." Will shouted.

"Technically, I am your principal." Mrs. Boise retorted, firing her guns again.

"Let's overlook that, okay?" Will replied, narrowly dodging the bullets.

Iron Man lifted his arm and readied his repulsor. "Give up while you're alive, Boise. It's four of us against one of you."

"Unfortunately for you, Stark, I'm more than an equal match for you four. Bring in a fifth and I will take you down. Add a sixth and I'll destroy you. A seventh, and I'll wipe you off the face of the Earth." Mrs. Boise taunted them.

"And cue dramatic villain monologue." Taylor deadpanned. "If this was a movie, or a story, that'd be happening right about now."

"I don't know how you found us, how you evaded us for so long," Mrs. Boise continued, oblivious to Taylor's comments, "But this ends here. After I eliminate you, I'll find the rest and mark my words, I'll crush you like the worthless bugs you are. Then, I will reign supreme, like I was always intended to. By the way, you can keep the teachers you captured, more continents for me anyways."

"You know why you are doomed to fail, Mrs. Boise?" Will asked. "Your team is disjointed, divided. No Avenger could make it on their own, except maybe Black Widow, because she's got crazy spy skills. But, even Romanoff needs her backup sometimes. You, Mrs. Boise, are never going to make it because you have no team. No one takes over the world on their own, and you're no exception."

"Well said, but speech shall not defeat this woman." Thor said. "Will, we must fight."

Will primed his blaster. "Ready when you are, guys."

"Good." Tony said. "Let's take this psychopath down."

The team flew at Mrs. Boise, Iron Man firing his repulsors, Thor wielding his hammer, Will screaming like a banshee and Taylor shooting a stun gun. Iron Man was first to reach the target, and he grabbed her out of the air. They tangled briefly, and Mrs. Boise was thrown off, somehow landing back on her hoverboard. Iron Man stumbled towards her, displaying a dent in his nearly impenetrable armor.

"Do you have no respect for quality craftsmanship?" Iron Man whined, looking at the damage on his suit. "These cost a heck of a lot of money to build and repair."

"Oh, muffin." Mrs. Boise jeered. "Well, too bad for you. I think I was doing you a favour, those suits are flimsy pieces of scrap metal." She took no time to listen to Tony's reply, and fired a volley of bullets towards them. The two boys lifted their boots up and activated the _shield_ function. Instantaneously, a transparent blue force field went up around them, and the shots bounced off harmlessly.

"Why couldn't Natasha join us?" Taylor groaned. "She'd have thrashed Mrs. Boise already."

"Lady Natasha is better off protecting our comrades." Thor answered. "She shall do her job admirably. And if by some bare chance we do fail in our quest, Lady Natasha would be our next line of defense."

"Besides," Will added, "who would pilot the Quinjet otherwise? Or keep Dr. Banner from turning into big, green and angry?"

"Hawkeye knows how to pilot the jet, and Banner can be calmed down by other people." Taylor argued, turning off the force field, and shooting the stun gun.

"Taylor, Widow is fine where she is." Iron Man said. "We'll be able to fight Mrs. Boise on our own."

"Or die trying on our own." Taylor added. "A little extra _woman_ power never hurt anyone, especially when the woman in question is a renowned assassin and a spy to boot."

"When you put it that way, it sounds tempting." Iron Man replied. "But we have a mission to carry out, and this time, we'll have to do it without Natasha."

Just then, Mrs. Boise set off a missile, startling the four heroes.

"We cannot stop it, Man of Iron." Thor declared. "We must take the cover."

"Run!" Will screeched, diving into nearby shrubbery. The others followed him, the missile hot on their trail. As they jumped into the bushes, the missile exploded, obliterating everything in sight.

 **Chapter 10**

Mrs. Boise touched down on the ground, stepping off her hoverboard. She surveyed the destroyed land in front of her, and smirked. _There was no way those four idiots could have gotten out of that._ Mrs. Boise thought. Looking at her high-tech hoverboard, she groaned. A piece of debris had gotten lodged in one of the turbines. Grumbling to herself about collateral damage, she sat down and got to work dislodging it. A couple leaves fell from a tree above her, but she paid it no attention, and kept pulling at the debris.

Above her, Tony Stark slipped back into consciousness, along with Thor. The two students were not as lucky, as they lay spread-eagle amongst the branches of the lone oak tree.

"We're going to lose our jobs." Tony moaned to Thor. "Well, we probably won't be alive when Fury fires us. Natasha will murder us both for what we did."

Thor looked at the two comatose boys, and lifted his hammer. Spinning it around a couple times, he generated sparks of lightning, and nudged the students with his hammer. Immediately they sprang up, as if they were jabbed by a hot poker. Trying very hard not to swear, the boys started to speak.

"I feel as if I stuck my finger into an electrical socket, and I'm blaming Thor." Taylor said. When Thor looked at him, Taylor just answered, "What? You're the only one of us here with freaky lightning powers."

"Guys, I thought you were dead." Stark gasped. "Thank God you aren't, Natasha isn't going to murder me anymore."

"Oh, I still am." Nat's voice said, and Stark nearly screamed.

"Romanoff? Where are you?" Tony squeaked out, fearing for his life.

"In Will's shoe, genius." the agent said. "Don't you know these things have intercoms? You built them, you should know."

"I forgot." Tony admitted sheepishly. "So, where are you really?"

"Look up." Natasha replied. The four guys did just that, and all did a double take. Lounged out on a branch of the tree was the assassin herself, accompanied by Kim who was sitting serenely next to her.

"Didn't you wonder how you got in this tree?" Natasha asked. "Kim and I pulled you out of the bush and up here during the explosion."

Kim smiled and waved to the guys, who were too stunned to wave back.

"Even you boys need backup." Romanoff said. "I listened to your little spiel, Will. Good job, very honest. I liked it a lot."

"Thanks." Will said, still very surprised. "So, what should we do? Mrs. Boise thinks we're dead."

"Your perfect advantage." Natasha said. "Every spy worth anything knows that the element of surprise is a deadly weapon. Use it, and you will be nearly unstoppable. Think back to when we took out Mr. Samitch. The illusion version of myself surprised him into letting his guard down. When we got Ms. Di Peña, Thor unexpectedly dropped out of a tree. When we captured Mrs. Rohan, Johan pulled the carpet out from under her- that's a surprise. Even when I knocked out Mr. Kowalski, he was shocked because you all stood together to protect Jules. Our missions were successes because of surprise attacks."

Kim affirmed Natasha's statement with a nod. "She's right. We can do this, guys." she said. "Don't give up."

Will smiled at Kim. "Of course we won't. We're Avengers."

"And as long as our heart beats within us, we will never surrender to the villainous and unworthy who challenge our might." Thor proclaimed proudly.

"Yeah, what he said." Taylor said. "Now, come on guys, I have a plan to defeat Mrs. Boise once and for all." He beckoned for the others to lean in.

After a whispered discussion, the six heroes got into position. Taylor gave them the signal and they all dropped out of the tree, forming a perfect circle surrounding Mrs. Boise. The wicked principal of John G. Althouse looked around wildly, seeing Tony holding up one of his repulsors, Thor raising his hammer, Black Widow lifting a sleek pistol, Will clutching the SWAGun and Taylor and Kim in a fighting stance with their fists at the ready.

"Surprise." Will said.

"I thought you were dead." Mrs. Boise said, amazed, but trying to figure out how two extra people just appeared.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but not today." Tony replied. "Now, do you want to get this over with and just surrender? Because I'm open to requests."

"Sorry to disappoint _you_ , but I don't give up so easily." Mrs. Boise goaded.

"Alright, have it your way." Black Widow said. "But, just letting you know, we don't give up easily either."

Kim looked frustrated. "Stop repeating what the other says. It gets annoying."

"She's right." Will said. "Stop repeating and let us defeat you."

Mrs. Boise had an evil smile on her face as she replied, "Not if I defeat you first, you miserable excuses for heroes."

"You know what?" Taylor yelled. "You're a miserable excuse for a villain."

"Hey, Taylor, you know what? This is driving me crazy." Black Widow grumbled.

"Join the club." Kim muttered. "I want to shoot someone."

"I want to shoot someone too." Will said, pointing at Mrs. Boise.

"That sounds really wrong." Iron Man laughed.

"You sound really wrong." Will retorted.

"Your life sounds really wrong." Iron Man countered.

"Your face is really wrong." Will snapped.

"Everything about you is really wrong." Iron Man said.

 _Something about this situation feels really wrong._ Mrs. Boise thought to herself.

"Hey, tin woodsman." Black Widow shouted. "You know what else is really wrong?"

"Lady Natasha is, as Midgardians say, ticked off." Thor whispered anxiously.

Taylor looked at Black Widow with wide eyes. "Thor, there's another expression us Midgardians use. It's _She's gonna blow._ "

"And what is this blowing you speak of?" Thor asked.

"It means she's going to flip out." Taylor replied.

"Lady Natasha is skilled at flipping indeed, but why must she flip out?" Thor inquired, clueless.

"IT MEANS SHE'S ANGRY." Taylor yelled.

"Oh, like our comrade the doctor." Thor realized. "Does Lady Natasha turn green as well?"

"No, she turns pink." Taylor said. "A lovely deep shade of fuchsia with coral highlights."

"Was that the sarcasm, Taylor?" Thor asked.

"No." Taylor replied sarcastically. "You think?"

"I think, therefore I am." Will joked.

"Cogito ergo sum." Natasha added. "That's the original Latin."

"Remember back in the day when you were sent to recruit me for S.H.I.E.L.D., Nat?" Tony reminiscenced. "And I asked you whether you even spoke Latin, and you said something like _falling sent rerun species_?"

" _Fallaces sunt rerum species_." Black Widow corrected. "Appearances are deceptive."

"Good times, good times." Iron Man said. "But didn't you say it meant something like you can either drive yourself home or I can have you collected?"

"Paraphrasing." Natasha said.

"What about this one? _In dubio abstine._ " Taylor asked. "When in doubt, abstain. And by that, I mean stop spouting Latin quotes."

Mrs. Boise looked back and forth wildly between the conversing Avengers and students. They were jumping unnaturally quickly from mockery, to anger to Latin proverbs. She was utterly confused by their train of thought.

"Just shut up and fight me!" Mrs. Boise yelled, hopping on her hoverboard. Unfortunately it would not fly, the debris was still lodged in the turbine. "Come on, stupid thing."

Just then, a strong wind current blew in, catching everyone off guard. But it was Mrs. Boise who was most surprised, for the wind came from the Quinjet hovering above them.

"Hey, Mrs. Boise?" A voice called, which was recognized as Clint Barton's. "I know another good proverb. _Veni, vidi, vici_. I came, I saw, I conquered. Well, I came here in the Quinjet. I saw you guys. And I assume now is the time to conquer."

"You assume correctly, Brother Clint." Thor said. "Lady Boise you are, as the Midgardians say, a lost cause."

Mrs. Boise looked at them all angrily, but she knew when she had been defeated. She slowly raised her hands in surrender. "Fine." she conceded. "I'll come quietly."

Taylor and Will looked at each other triumphantly. Kim gave a discreet fist pump as Iron Man snapped handcuffs onto Mrs. Boise wrists, and led her away.

"Finally. Thank goodness." Taylor said. "I thought she'd be all like _bring in a thirty first, and I will tear you limb from limb, mwa-ha-ha-ha!_ " Kim and Will laughed, as Taylor strutted around, pretending to be the principal.

"I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog too." Taylor screeched.

Agent Romanoff laughed, walking towards them. "Good work you three. That's one less threat to the safety of the world."

"But, where's Ms. Darvey?" Will asked.

"I have no clue." Romanoff replied. "But usually once the leader is overthrown, henchmen- or women- become no problem."

"I hope so." Will said. "I really don't want to fight her. She's our teacher, for crying out loud."

"Will, it takes a truly brave man to stand up to his friends. It's just as, maybe even more hard than facing an enemy." Natasha said. "I once had a good friend named Helena. We trained together in the Red Room Academy, and we were practically inseparable. When I joined S.H.I.E.L.D., my first mission was to take out a rogue assassin who was under the alias Midnight. When I did find Midnight, I realized just who I was dealing with."

"Helena." Will guessed.

"Exactly. From what I had read, Midnight had been working for HYDRA for nearly a decade. Killed numerous people, and actually nearly murdered Clint. I couldn't bear to dispatch my friend, but I was threatening the safety of the world if I didn't."

"So you did."

"Well..."

"Natasha!" Will cried, shocked.

"Will, you must be braver than I was. I was young then, and foolish in my decision." Romanoff said. "I told her I would spare her life if she denounced HYDRA and would live under a fake name. Helena Ivanovna is dead, but Olga Dimitriovna is alive and well. That'll be Olga Dimitriovna, the assassin who works for various mercenaries around the world. Nick never found out what I did, but if he had... I'd be kicked out of S.H.I.E.L.D. for good."

Will looked at Natasha in disbelief. He couldn't believe that such an intelligent and talented agent like her would make a decision like that. If Natasha couldn't do it, how could he?

"I know it is difficult to accept, but once a friend takes a firm stance against you, they really aren't your friend anymore." Natasha added. "You have to fight it."

He wasn't sure, but Will thought he saw a single tear in the corner of the usually brusque and confident agent. Natasha blinked a couple times and shook her head. Will hesitated before putting his arm around Agent Romanoff, she looked like she needed a hand.

"Thank you." Natasha said quietly. The two of them stood together in solidarity, not moving. Romanoff pulled away after a couple minutes, with a melancholy look on her face.

"It's always hard to leave those you care about." she whispered. "Too hard." She turned away and walked into the Quinjet, where the rest of the Avengers and 8F were waiting.

 **Chapter 11**

The Avengers stood in front of the students, slightly uneasy about what they had to say. They whispered something between themselves, and Tony and Clint pushed Natasha and Bruce forward. Bruce cleared his throat nervously, and Natasha tucked a wayward curl behind her ear.

"We'll miss you guys so much." Bruce managed to say. He looked to Natasha for support, and she understood.

"You all have been indispensable in our pursuit of your teachers." Romanoff continued for her friend. "Without your ingenuity, quick-thinking and aptitude, we may not have succeeded in our mission. On behalf of all the Avengers, thank you for everything."

Regaining his confidence, Dr. Banner continued. "You've made us smile every moment on this trip. Every single one of you has inspired us, changed us for the better. But the mission is over, and the threat nullified. So, we must say goodbye. The Quinjet will take you to Toronto, and then we'll be off."

The class was silent. Only Talha stepped up to break the deafening quiet that had spread over the room.

"So is this it? It's all over now? What about our teachers?" Talha asked. "We need new ones, as Mr. Samitch, Ms. Di Peña, Ms. Darvey and Mr. Kowalski can't teach us anymore because they have a criminal record."

The Avengers looked at the class in utter surprise, Talha had a point.

"We only have French, gym and vocal teachers left." Vivian said. "How are we supposed to graduate without marks in all our other subjects?"

"Damn it, she's right." Tony said.

"Language." Steve added, looking disapprovingly at Tony.

"But she is." Tony countered. "How _are_ they supposed to graduate? I don't want to let these kids go back home and not achieve what they deserve. I mean, they saved the world and they don't get to graduate? Who are we, monsters? Well, we will be monsters if we don't help them out somehow."

"Is this really Tony Stark speaking?" Natasha said in mock disbelief. "This is the first smart notion you've had this week."

Tony gave Natasha a look that said _seriously_ , and turned back to the others. "I won't let this happen. This just isn't right."

"I agree with Tony." Bruce said. "They should be helped to graduate, and I know just the way."

But before Bruce could continue, a blast rocked the Quinjet, knocking everyone off their feet. Tony stumbled over to the pilot's seat, and pressed a button. "J.A.R.V.I.S., what the heck is going on?" Stark yelled. There was no reply. "J.A.R.V.I.S., can you hear me?"

A crackled, British-accented voice came to life, but was nearly overpowered by static. "Sir, there is a sudden electrical surge on the jet, and only the jet. I can deduce two possible causes of this circumstance. It is unlikely that Thor caused this, but correct me if I am wrong, Sir, there is one uncaptured teacher who has similar powers over lightning."

"Mother of Thor, you're right, J.A.R.V.I.S." Taylor exclaimed. "Ms. Darvey does have lightning powers, I bet it's her."

"Initiate Heat Signature Scan, J.A.R.V.I.S." Tony said.

"One heat signature outside the Quinjet has been detected, Sir." J.A.R.V.I.S. answered. "I am focusing the jet cameras onto it right now."

And to everyone's horror, an image of Ms. Darvey riding her hoverboard with lightning stemming from her fingertips appeared on the Quinjet's screens.

"Oh, muffins." Nicole whispered, dismay written all over her face.

"Why not the Poptarts?" Thor asked.

"Doesn't have the same ring to it, don't you think?" Clint joked. "Now, what are we going to do about the teacher?"

Will stepped forward with a determined look on his face. "We're going to fight. 8F? Let's get ready."

The Avengers watched in awe as the twenty five students began to walk hurriedly to the weapons room. Wanting to know what happened next, they followed. Inside the room, they were greeted by the students equipping themselves with various bits of gear. They strapped on utility boots and zipped up jackets of various colours. Girls clipped on various bits of jewellery with laser functions inside the gems, and boys fastened armbands with assorted projectiles attached to them.

Steve looked at the sight in front of him with respect. "Reminds me of the good old days back in the force." Captain America said to his teammates.

"They're really something." Bruce said, watching the teens communicate and respond to one another. "A team."

In almost perfect unison, the students stopped suiting up and walked towards the heroes. The Avengers were struck speechless by how fast they got ready.

"We can handle this." Katie spoke. "Take a break, and look after the jet, will you?"

The astonished heroes just nodded as 8F filed past them.

"Wow." Tony Stark said. "Just, wow. I honestly can't believe what I'm seeing."

"It's like complete cognitive recalibration." Natasha said, sharing a smile with Clint.

Meanwhile, 8F did not know what had just gotten into them.

"Why on earth did we say we'd fight Ms. Darvey on our own?" Rebecca panicked. "What are we going to do? Do we have a death wish or something? Oh my God, at least let's write down our wills first."

"We're not going to die, Becca." Vivian said. "At least, I don't think we are."

"We ARE going to die." Rebecca lamented. "We don't even know how to use this weaponry."

Jules looked at the ring on her thumb. "I think you just twist the gem here and- whoa!" A laser shot out through the center of the fake gem, nearly burning a hole in the Quinjet wall.

Dexter applauded sarcastically. "Well done, now we know what it does."

The students laughed, glad for at least one lighthearted moment in this dire situation. Will cleared his throat, and pushed a button on the side of the wall. The back of the jet began to open, and slipping on emergency parachutes, the twenty five students leapt out of the plane. They instantly tapped the _hover_ button on their utility boots, and they remained suspended in the air- all except for Dexter, who began to plummet. With no regard for his own safety, Taylor dove down and caught Dexter.

"Thanks." Dexter breathed out in a sigh of relief. "That was too close."

"She's on our seven." Ajay said, pointing behind him to Ms. Darvey who fortunately hadn't noticed them so far. "What's our plan?"

Vivian decided to take charge. "Okay, so fifteen of us will fly below Ms. Darvey, and the rest of us will attack her. If she knocks any of us out of the sky, the people below her will catch whoever is falling."

"Okay, all in favour of Vivian's plan?" Will asked, deciding to get a vote. It was unanimous. "Alright, that's what we'll do. Viv, if this fails, we're blaming you."

"What?" Vivian screeched. "Will, last time I checked it is not Blame Vivian Day today."

"Well, it will be if this doesn't work. But then again, we wouldn't be alive to blame you." Will joked.

Vivian gulped nervously as she picked out Taylor, Nicole, Jennifer, Kim, Keegan, Will, Johan, Ajay and Serena for her strike team. The rest she motioned to fly below Ms. Darvey, and stay discreetly in the clouds. "Don't do anything rash or stupid." she called to them as they flew off. "Or both."

"You got it, Viv." Megan replied, disappearing into the clouds below.

"On my signal, we attack." Vivian instructed. "Alright, one, two, three, CHARGE!"

And with a rousing cry, the ten students flew at Ms. Darvey and raised their weapons. The girls were firing their lasers and the boys were setting off miniature missiles and shooting guns. Ms. Darvey rotated towards them and shot out bursts of blue lightning. Quick to act, Taylor and Will rushed in front of their classmates and activated the shields on their utility boots. As the lightning connected with the force fields, the boys staggered back.

"Come on, guys." Serena yelled. "Fight it." The brave girl then decided to give them a hand, rushing behind them to push against the lightning bolts. In a matter of seconds, the lightning dissipated and Taylor and Will dropped from exhaustion, tumbling through the air. As they fell, Jules, Hannah, Julian and Felix quickly got under them. Connecting hands to form a net of sorts, they smoothly caught the two falling boys. Rudaina zoomed out and gave Serena a thumbs up sign to let her know that their classmates were safe.

Vivian urged another attack, and Ajay rocketed towards Ms. Darvey. Trying to throw her off the hoverboard, he crashed straight into the teacher. He succeeded in pushing her back a couple meters, but then Ms. Darvey moved to one side. With his already high momentum, Ajay flew past her, showing no signs of stopping. "Help, I can't stop these boots!" Ajay panicked, waving his arms wildly.

Jennifer and Kim nodded at each other, and raised their hands. On each of their wrists, sparkled a charm bracelet embedded with rhinestones. Jennifer grinned. "Time to see what these can do, Kim." Looking at the various charms, one caught Jennifer's eye. It was a shooting star, with a cluster of three little yellow rhinestones in the center. Pressing one of the stones, a burst of yellow energy came from one of the star's points. It missed its target, but now Jennifer knew what it did. She looked back at the charm and saw one of the yellow gems turn gray. _That must tell you how many shots you have._ Jennifer thought. Taking aim, Jennifer fired another ball of energy at Ms. Darvey. It hit her square in the chest.

"Yes, good shot." Keegan cheered, flying over to help the girls get Ms. Darvey in the jet. But then Ms. Darvey rose, her eyes sparkling with yellow lights. She began to glow brightly, and then shot out a ball of energy twice the size of the one that hit her. Kim's mouth dropped open in a perfect _o_ of shock as the energy hurtled towards her, Keegan and Jennifer. As the energy connected with the three students, they were thrown back violently, hurtling through the sky. Rudaina signaled from below, and she along with Katie, Megan, Rose, Nathan and William rushed to catch them.

"Vivian looked around, trying to orient herself. She saw Johan, Serena and Nicole were the only ones left standing, along with her. Serena was waving her hands at Vivian, as if she was trying to alert her to something- but what?

Serena then yelled as loud as she could, "Look out, Vivian, it's Ms. Darvey." But just as Vivian realised what Serena was saying, she felt a hot, blistering feeling pierce her side, and then she was falling.

"No!" Serena yelled, and Johan had to restrain her from following Vivian.

"It'll be okay." Johan whispered urgently. "They'll catch her. Now, our priority is to detain Ms. Darvey, and then we'll check on Viv."

Serena nodded nervously. "Come on, let's go and get her. I have a plan." Beckoning Nicole to join them, she began to instruct her classmates. "Johan, I need you to hold Ms. Darvey off until we're ready, alright?"

"Yeah, got it." Johan agreed, as he raised a blaster and flew away.

"Nicole, I need you to conjure an illusion, some sort of missile that'll chase Ms. Darvey." Serena commanded.

"Serena, I've never actually controlled my illusions. They just kind of stay there and do their own thing." Nicole said.

"Well, I'll need you to try." Serena said. "Make it chase Ms. Darvey into that patch of clouds, where I'll be waiting. You see this charm shaped like a lock? It probably makes either a net or handcuffs. I'll use those on Ms. Darvey, and then bam, mission complete." After receiving a nod from the girl next to her, Serena yelled to Johan, "We're ready." and rushed into the clouds.

With all her might, Nicole conjured a large missile. Concentrating, she imagined its inner workings. Pressing a metaphorical _start_ button, she opened her eyes to see the missile pursue Ms. Darvey. "Yes!" she cried in triumph. "Hallelujah!"

"This is not a religious school." Johan yelled, firing one last shot at Ms. Darvey before pretending to run off.

Meanwhile, Ms. Darvey was fleeing for her life. How the missile got there, she didn't know. But one thing was for sure. If she didn't get away, she'd be taking her last breath in a fiery inferno in the sky. Chancing a glance behind her, she saw the missile wasn't far behind. Ms. Darvey decided to dash into a patch of clouds in a hope that she could lose the missile there. So, taking a deep breath, the teacher raced right in.

Slightly disoriented with all the white clouds around her, Ms. Darvey kept pushing forward, hearing the eerie hum of the missile behind her. Just then, she saw a figure in the clouds. Could it have been an angel waiting to take her to heaven? _But then again, with all the bad things I've done, I might as well be going to the other place._ Ms. Darvey thought. But it was no angel. It was one of her students, not discernible at the distance she was at. It looked like Jennifer, or maybe Vivian. As she flew closer, she could see that it was Serena.

"Run, the missile is coming!" Ms. Darvey yelled to her pupil, who hovered unmoving in the clouds. Serena raised her hand, and pressed something on her wrist. Suddenly, a chain flew at her, wrapping itself across Ms. Darvey's frame and tying itself across her hands and feet. Looking behind her, Ms. Darvey could see the missile disappear into thin air. _An illusion_.

"I was going to take over the world on my own." Ms. Darvey lamented. "I could have renamed it Darveytopia."

"The world doesn't deserve the name Darveytopia." Serena laughed, leading Ms. Darvey away to where the rest of the class was waiting. "I think the Serenaverse is much better."

 **Epilogue of Part 1**

8F returned onto the Quinjet to receive the applause of all six Avengers. As Thor led Ms. Darvey away to a containment cell, the rest of the superheroes offered their congratulations.

"Amazing work, all of you." Steve enthused.

"You were incredible, I couldn't believe what I was watching." Natasha added, pulling the girls in for a very uncharacteristic move of hers: a group hug.

Tony smiled at all of the students. "I believe we've found the next generation of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. You guys all work perfectly together."

"You've obviously mastered teamwork, strategies and tactics. All very useful skills." Bruce said.

Clint cleared his throat, and the room went silent. Knowing what was coming next, the heroes all stood together. "While you were out there, being amazing," Clint began, "we had a discussion. As your teachers have been removed from John G. Althouse, you obviously need replacements."

"Suitable replacements, somebody who could instruct you to reach your highest potential." Thor chimed in, returning to the room.

"So, we talked it over with Director Fury, and he's giving us a leave of absence." Barton continued. "We gave your vice-principal a call, who is now principal, and he gladly gave us the contract."

"Contract?" Megan asked.

Unable to keep it in any longer, Tony yelled, "We're going to be your new teachers!"

And the Quinjet exploded with screams of delight.

"What? No way." Willem gasped.

"Yes, way." Natasha replied. "We sorted it all out. I'm going to teach you language, Bruce will teach you math, Tony will take science, Steve is obviously doing history and geography and Thor will take over band."

"The Asgardian orchestra is quite impressive." Thor added.

"What about Clint?" Rudaina asked. "Is he teaching?"

"Clint's a family man." Tony said jovially. "He'll be with his wife and children, and also keeping up his work at S.H.I.E.L.D."

"This is the best news ever." Julian said, almost jumping up and down. "The Black Widow as our homeroom teacher? Awesome."

"Don't forget the two geniuses teaching math and science." William added.

"And someone who experienced World War II being our history- and geography teacher." Nathan said.

Natasha whipped out two books from a desk nearby. The class could see the titles Anna Karenina and Crime and Punishment on the front covers. "Russian literature is going to hook you in, I know it."

"You like Tolstoy?" Nicole gasped reverently, pointing to Anna Karenina. "Me too."

"Some of the best books ever written." Romanoff replied. "His characters are so lifelike, you expect them to leap off the pages. To Kill a Mockingbird is tissue paper compared to these."

Willem picked one of the books up. "H-ea-vy." he wheezed.

Natasha laughed. "I also have some other lessons to teach, like how to pick a lock in under a minute, how to make your own poison with what you have around you and the art of disguise on an undercover mission."

"And I'm going to bring in one of my suits for you guys to tinker with." Tony said. "Plus, we're going to have an explosively awesome chemistry unit."

"Let's just say you'll never be bored in math again." Bruce added.

The students looked at one another.

"It's going to be an adventure, that's for sure." Felix said.

"How can we say no?" Jules asked rhetorically.

"We're in." the class chorused.

Part 2

 **Chapter 12**

Two weeks later, the students were arriving to school on the fourth day of the cycle.

"What've we got today?" Nathan asked, rifling through the books in his locker.

Vivian glanced at her schedule. "We've got first period language with Ms. Romanoff, second period math with Dr. Banner, third period French with Madame Mathis, fourth period science with Mr. Stark, fifth period drama with Mr. McWilliam and sixth period geography with Mr. Rogers."

"Awesome." Nathan replied. "Let's get going."

The students all rushed down the hall towards the library, where their teacher was waiting for them. You could hear various cries of _good morning, Ms. Romanoff_ or _good morning Natasha_ and _morning, Nat._ Natasha Romanoff was fine with letting the students call her by her first name, and after all, _she_ didn't call them Mr. Robertson or Ms. Li. This was something she made very clear on the first day she came to John G.

"Alright, class." Romanoff began after the morning announcements. "Today, I have a question for you. What is Information Night?"

Not sure whether their teacher was joking with them, 8F didn't respond. After a few moments, they saw she was serious.

"It's, um, basically when parents of prospective students come and see if they and their kids like the school." Rose explained helpfully. "And I bet that this Information Night is going to be jam-packed with people once news spreads that you and the other Avengers are teaching here."

Romanoff nodded. "I see, so it's like a dog and pony show, so to speak."

"Yeah." Rose affirmed. "In essence."

"Mr. D'Andrade has started to plan out an itinerary of events on Information Night." Dexter added. "He wants either Thor or Mr. Worden to conduct an ensemble, that's for sure. And he probably would want a couple teachers and students to do some demonstrations."

Satisfied with their answer, Agent Romanoff began the lesson. "I trust that everyone has read the first twenty chapters of Anna Karenina?" The class nodded, pulling out their copies.

"But, we are going to start a lesson in parallel to the one we are currently on." Natasha continued. "It's called How to Detect Lying in an Interrogation, and How to Conceal the Truth."

A couple students who most likely had not been truthful when the Black Widow asked whether they finished the chapters gulped.

Romanoff began to slowly pace through the classroom. As she spoke, she created an intimidating impression upon the students. Her clothes that day were stylish, but had a message that said _don't mess with me_. All in all, Ms. Romanoff definitely didn't look like the other teachers.

"Nicole, describe to me one supporting character we meet in the first couple chapters." Romanoff instructed. "Also, spell Shterbatsky."

"Darya 'Dolly' Oblonsky, who is Anna's sister in law. She is married to Stiva Oblonsky, and she suffers from his unfaithfulness towards her, having to deal with his constant affairs. Her husband calls Anna to smooth things over between them, and it sets into motion her meeting with Count Vronsky." Nicole answered obediently. "And it is spelled S-H-T-E-R-B-A-T-S-K-Y, Shterbatsky."

Looking pleased, Natasha nodded. "Yes, well done, and nice pronunciation of the Russian names. Now, Nathan, what is Stiva's real name?"

Nathan did not hear his teacher, as he was absorbed in his current game of Minecraft. Praveen made a loud _meep_ sound, but Nathan still didn't hear. Sighing, Natasha walked over to her laptop, typed in a few commands, and closed the computer. Seconds later, a cry of discontent could be heard from Nathan.

"What the hell? My computer just shut all its windows down and is doing something really weird." Nathan complained, rotating his computer screen to show everyone a game of TETRIS flashing on and off, and the windows opening randomly, scrolling through every site he went on in the past twenty four hours. There was a lot.

"While Nathan is dealing with his technical difficulties, can someone please answer what Stiva's non-Anglicised name is?" Romanoff asked innocently.

Raising his hand, William replied, "Stepan."

8F watched, dumbfounded as Dr. Banner wrote out an incredibly complex math equation on the board. Even the most mathematically profound students in the class were confused as their teacher worked through the problem. This is how their teacher started the lessons every day, it was a strategy for keeping the students focused. And it worked every time. But today, everyone noticed that Dr. Banner was evidently distracted.

As he got to the last line of the equation, Bruce looked it over. "Wait, something's wrong." The students peered at the equation, and they figured it out.

"Ah-ha." Praveen declared. "You forgot to subtract negative ten, Dr. Banner."

Bruce looked it over a couple times. "You're right." he groaned. "I'm sorry guys, I've been lately so distracted."

The students glanced at each other and shrugged. It couldn't hurt to play psychologist for their math teacher.

"Tell us about it." Rose said helpfully.

"Well, it's Natasha." Bruce began.

Keegan looked intrigued. "Girlfriend trouble, right."

"Not exactly." Bruce said. "Well, okay, yes. I wanted to get her something, and I have no clue what Russian assassins like. I'm hopeless."

Vivian contemplated this. "Well, take away her profession. Don't look at that. Who is she, really? What is she like?"

"Well," Bruce said, "she's got a tough exterior, but she is a generally kind person. She's sympathetic and compassionate. She's understood my pain."

The class mulled this over, and Rebecca spoke up. "I think we're onto something. Let's see, any particular memories that you two have?"

"Well, missions of course. She is usually the one who calms the other guy down." Bruce realized.

"Of course! The other guy." Katie realized, having an epiphany. "Give her something that sis a subtle representation of him. Like a necklace with a green pendant."

"Yes, let her know that she has basically a connection to your biggest secret." Bruce said, following Katie's train of thought. "You guys are brilliant, thank you. Now, onto the lesson. We're starting 3D geometry. So, who can tell me how to find the surface area of a cylinder?"

The next period, Madame Mathis told the class that Mr. D'Andrade wanted to see them. "Something about Information Night." she explained, ushering them towards the office.

When they walked into Mr. D'Andrade's office, they were greeted by not only the principal, but the five Avengers who were teaching at the school. Steve waved hello to the students, who smiled back at him. After pulling up some chairs, 8F took a seat.

"As you know, the Information Night is in a week, and we are expecting quite a crowd." Mr. D'Andrade said. "This class has become a symbol for John G., when you defeated the rogue teachers and saved the world. So, we would like you to get together with your teachers to put together a presentation. Something with the message _anyone can be a hero, you just need the right place to become one._ Mr. Stark has already presented to me a couple ideas. Mr. Stark?"

"Okay, picture this." Tony started. "We'll have five segments, dividing the class into groups of five with one of us at the helm. Each of us will come up with a little demo or something to do."

"Sounds good." Felix agreed. "How are the groups going to be arranged?"

Tony thought a little before answering. "We can each choose five people. Want to do that now?" The class nodded their agreement, and Tony continued. "Okay, I'll take Jules, Will, Dexter, Taylor and Ajay? Nat, what about you?"

"Rebecca, Jennifer, Nicole, Johan and Keegan." Natasha decided quickly.

"Vivian, Praveen, Katie, William and Willem." Bruce chose.

"I'll take Julian, Talha, Hannah, Rudaina and Rose." Steve added.

"That leaves Nathan, Felix, Megan, Serena and Kim with me." Thor finished.

Mr. D'Andrade took down some notes on a piece of paper. "I look forward to seeing the end result. This will be the most successful Information Night we've ever had. I heard a bunch of news channels will be coming to televise the night, so be prepared."

"Alright, sir. We won't let you down." Captain America said.

"I doubt that you will. After all, you are superheroes. You're the Avengers." Mr. D'Andrade said. "I seriously don't think that you'd mess this up."

Natasha smiled. "Well, after the missions we've been tasked with, impressing a bunch of parents shouldn't be much of a problem."

"Well, don't count your chickens before they're hatched." Rose joked. "Some parents are really demanding and stuff."

"I guess." Natasha mused. "But we can impress them for sure."

 **Chapter 13**

Nathan peered out at the horde of parents and students, not to mention news crews awaiting the start of the Information Night presentations. It was rather harrowing to see all these people, waiting to judge your every fault and count you accountable for every mistake you made.

"What've we gotten ourselves into?" Nathan groaned.

"Feeling nervous, Nate?" Tony Stark asked.

"It's just Nathan, and yes." Nathan replied. "I don't think I've ever been more terrified in my life."

Tony looked at him with a sympathetic expression. "You know, before I go onstage at the Stark Expo, I think of everything I've got to lose if I mess up. I can lose my respect, my money, the list goes on. But am I going to lose the people I love? No way. Pepper and I aren't going to split just because I mess up onstage. I won't lose my job, because that's the best part of running your own company. Neither will I lose _all_ my money, that's figuratively impossible. And I won't die if I mess up. So, love, job, life, all the truly important things that we have, you won't lose them if you mess up."

"I guess you're right." Nathan conceded.

"Now, come on." Tony smiled. "We've got a crowd to impress."

"We do." Natasha said, coming up to Nathan and Tony.

Tony whistled. "Wow, Natasha. You're going to kill Dr. Banner in that getup."

Nat blushed, trying to look anywhere but at Tony. "Shut up, tin woodsman."

"In fact, I'm going to get your boyfriend right now." Tony continued, rushing off. "Nathan, find a camera. I'll need an image of Bruce's face."

Natasha stared at Nathan. "It's not bad, is it?"

Nathan looked at his language teacher and the thoughts in his head came to a screeching halt. Nat wore a form-fitting forest green dress that had short cap sleeves and came down to about her knees. A sophisticated belt rested on her hips, and she wore matching black heels. Encircling her neck was a chain of silver leaves with pale yellow and green gems embedded here and there. "It's not bad, but I'm with Tony on this one. Dr. Banner is going to have a heart attack." He stumbled around, clutching his chest and pretended to go into shock.

"Bozhe moy." Romanoff said.

"I think I see them." Nathan commented, to Natasha's horror.

"Bozhe moy." Natasha repeated and ducked behind Nathan.

Tony and Bruce approached Nathan, and Nathan gulped. "Hey, guys. So, Natasha had to go..."

Stark flashed his trademark smirk. "Tasha, quit hiding. I know you're behind Nathan." He yanked on her arm, and sent her flying out from behind Nathan. She went sprawling on the floor.

"Tony, stop bugging Natasha." Bruce said, giving Romanoff a hand.

Natasha gratefully accepted it, and stood up in front of Dr. Banner. "Thanks."

And then Bruce saw why Tony dragged him over there. "Holy..." he managed, before taking off his glasses and furiously rubbing them with the hem of his shirt. "Okay, so I'm not hallucinating. Um..."

"Well, this is awkward." Romanoff muttered. "I hate you, Stark."

Tony grinned. "Feeling the love already." He pulled Nathan away. "Come on, Nathan. The lovebirds need their moment."

"STARK!" Natasha yelled furiously, before turning around to face Dr. Banner. She gave him an apologetic smile.

"You look nice, by the way." Dr. Banner said, nervously running a hand through his hair.

"Thank you." Natasha said. "Is this what it takes for you to say that?"

"No, no." Bruce replied profusely. "I'm serious. You always look good."

"I'm just kidding, Bruce."

"Oh. Well, so when this is all over, can I take you out for dinner?"

"I'd like that." Natasha said, taking Dr. Banner's hand in her own.

Behind a wall, someone was listening in to this conversation. Hearing the last few snippets of the exchange, he did an internal victory dance. _I am SO good._ Tony thought. _Now, if only I can make this happen more often._

Mr. D'Andrade tapped the microphone to get the crowd's attention. "Hello, everyone and welcome. Welcome to John G. Althouse Middle School's information night. I'm Mr. D'Andrade, and I am privileged to be the principal at this school. The goal of John G. Althouse is to push your child to succeed in every way possible, and fulfill their potential. Tonight, I will be introducing you to a group of grade eight students who have absolutely met the goal of the school. They are now international heroes, who have succeeded in halting a plan for world domination. And their teachers have been with them every single step of the way. I present to you, tonight, 8F and the Avengers."

The crowd cheered as something shot down from the ceiling. It was Tony, in his Iron Man suit, accompanied by five other suits done in a purple and silver paint job. Landing on the stage, they called 'we are here to help' and their visors opened to reveal Jules, Will, Dexter, Taylor and Ajay.

"This is so cheesy." Dexter whispered to Jules, who giggled in response.

Showboating, Iron Man did one final loop before touching down on the stage.

"Hello students and parents." Tony yelled gleefully. "I am, as you probably know, Tony Stark, and I am the proud teacher of these students. In case you were wondering, these students and their classmates single-handedly built these suits, using my blueprints and advice. And here they are, in working order and no malfunctions, thank God."

The audience applauded as a photograph of the students building the suits projected onto the screen placed on the stage. Tony clapped as well. "Yes, a job well done indeed. And tonight, we will be auctioning off another suit, which will be constructed to the winner's specifications. All proceeds from the auction will be donated to this wonderful school. And what can you do with these suits, you may ask? Well, you can save the world, that's what you can do." The audience cheered again as the six of them rose above the crowd and began to perform a series of complicated aerial stunts. Jules then pulled a glitter bomb out of a compartment in the suit and tossed it above the joyful crowd. The news crews filmed every bit of the display.

Next, Natasha Romanoff, Rebecca, Jennifer, Nicole, Johan and Keegan walked onto the stage, to tumultuous applause.

"School is perceived as boring, uninteresting sometimes." Natasha said. "But at John G., uninteresting isn't in our vocabulary. Along with my usual language lessons, which consist of debates, Russian literature and creative writing, I teach self-defence. Self-defence is an invaluable skill to have. Being able to protect yourself is extremely important, because, let's face it, the world isn't always a happy and safe place. These students know that, from the mission they took on nearly a month ago. So, tonight, these students will present a demonstration of some of the things they've learned in my classes."

Rebecca, Jennifer, Nicole, Johan and Keegan bowed to the crowd, and then bowed to each other.

"This is the respectful way to greet an opponent when doing martial arts." Rebecca explained. "After that, you're free to trounce them. Hi-yah!" And with a cry, she launched herself at Jennifer. Jennifer dodged, then aimed a fierce kick at Rebecca. Meanwhile, Johan and Keegan had begun a series of punches and chops, blocks and strikes. And Nicole had faced off against Natasha, doing a rapid spinning kick towards her teacher.

The audience watched in amazement as the students demonstrated moves that seemed inhuman. They flew through the air with ease, and kicked and punched as smooth as a knife through butter. The crowd was astounded that Nicole could hold her own even when fighting her experienced teacher.

After a good five minutes of dodges, parries and swings, the students and their teacher stopped, bowed to each other and then bowed to the audience, who was on its feet and cheering.

"Top that." Natasha told Bruce as she and the five students walked offstage.

Bruce looked at the students next to him. "Well, let's give the lady what she wants." he joked, walking onstage. The crowd just cheered even louder when they saw Dr. Banner.

"Tonight we shall perform a feat that will astound you." Bruce said. "There's math involved. Insanely hard math. And these students are going to solve it."

Natasha wheeled out a whiteboard and handed Dr. Banner a marker. Bruce took it, and began to write. He finished with _(1/x^2-3x+2) = (1/x+2) + (5/x^2-4)_.

"Oh my God." said a math professor in the crowd, who was considering taking his daughter to John G. If he found it hard to solve this problem, how could a grade eight student even cope?

Praveen looked at it, and shrugged. He took the marker and started to write, factoring denominators, multiplying terms and combining numbers. He grinned as he wrote out _x =_ _-2.79_ on the board.

"He's right." cried the math professor, as the crowd screamed with delight.

Next, Vivian worked out a particularly tricky word problem about where Loki would land if he was thrown off the top of Stark Tower by the Hulk (it was apparently right on top of the Empire State Building). Katie took the marker and finished another word problem about preventing a radioactive formula from exploding. Finally William and Willem teamed up to solve an algebra question. The crowd was dumbfounded, and nearly all the mothers were already making plans for asking Dr. Banner to tutor their children in math. They applauded wildly as Praveen, Vivian, Katie, William, Willem and Dr. Banner waved and walked off.

"Come to John G.!" Willem yelled into the microphone as he walked off.

Next up was Captain Rogers along with Julian, Talha, Hannah, Rudaina and Rose. Steve took the microphone and began to speak. "What makes John G. Althouse a unique school? It's the fact that our students are caring, kind and look out for one another. I'm Mr. Rogers and I teach history and geography. But not only that. I teach these students how to be heroes in the real world."

"History deals a lot with heroes and villains. I lived to see World War II ravage the world that I love, to see madmen kill not only innocent people, but spirit, culture and humanity. And the citizens of our countries needed heroes to show them that spirit, culture and humanity should be unbreakable." Steve said.

Hannah took the microphone from him. "And when the world needs heroes, we have to be there. To show that there is light that can eradicate dark. We know that there'll always be darkness. Hiding in closets and sneaking into our hearts. But light isn't always guaranteed to be there, so we need to keep the light."

"We need to take the flame from our torches and ignite those that were extinguished." Rose continued. "We must pass on the light to those who need it most. And that is what a hero does. They'll take a flashlight and shine it into every patch of dark they can see. Every patch of dark that threatens our world's safety."

"And a hero is there for the people." Julian added. "He'll stay vigilant until the sun rises, and fight when it sets. They'll never give up, and always stand up for what they believe in. Because they'll die if they have to, but they'll die believing in what they always believed in. And do you know what a hero believes in?"

"A hero believes that every innocent person is someone worth fighting for." Talha answered. "A hero believes that good will triumph over evil. A hero believes that we have to keep on going, stay strong no matter what happens, no matter what. A hero knows that if they can't save the world, they'd better avenge it!"

The crowd was cheering as Rudaina finished the speech. "When I came to John G., I never dreamed I'd become a hero. The bearer of a torch that passes its light to others. But who knows what your life has in store, so if you dream of becoming a hero, make that dream a reality. And if you dream of becoming a hero, why don't you come to John G. Althouse Middle School?"

The audience was convinced that they must sign up their children immediately. But the night wasn't over yet. Thor and his group consisting of Nathan, Felix, Megan, Serena and Kim walked up onstage, carrying instruments, music stands and binders. Nathan lugged his heavy tuba, Megan held her flute, Kim carried her French horn and Felix and Serena both clutched violins.

Thor didn't need the microphone, his voice boomed across the gym easily. "We are performing an original composition that these students put together. Presenting _Hero's Mission_ , composed by Nathan Ouedraogo, Megan Williams, Kimberly Sine, Felix Liu and Serena Chan." He then picked up the conductor's baton and gave the downbeat.

The quintet came to life with a stately fanfare from the tuba and French horn. It accelerated into an allegro tempo, with the violinists playing a dramatic measure, accompanied by a harmony from the flute. Kim joined in with the harmony, while Nathan kept playing a steady beat. They kept accelerating until the audience was sure that they could see smoke rising from the violinists' bows. Then the players stopped suddenly. Megan pierced the silence with a simple ta-tah-ta-tah on the b flat, like a heart beating. Then Kim joined in, playing on the offbeat. Serena and Felix added a scale going up and down on the violins. Nathan then blared out a single note signaling the launch back into an allegro. One minute later, the music had finished and the audience was on its feet again, hollering for an encore.

The rest of the Avengers and students joined the little ensemble onstage and they took a bow. But just as they were righting themselves after their third bow, a crash emanated from above them, and a chunk of the ceiling fell down. Quick as lighting, Iron Man zipped up and caught the ceiling before it could hit anyone. The audience looked uneasy, not sure if this was part of the show. All of a sudden, someone flew through the gaping hole in the ceiling of the gym.

"Who are you?" Felix yelled bravely.

"Why do I have to tell you?" the hooded figure responded. He was hovering in the air as if by magic. He pulled off his hood to reveal dark hair and pale blue eyes. He looked directly at Natasha, who was staring back at him with a horror-struck expression. "Hello, Natasha. It's been a while."

"Bozhe moy." Natasha gasped. "It can't be."

 **Chapter 14**

Natasha Romanoff had never been more shocked in her life. Well, that could be a lie, Budapest was pretty... surprising. But that man hovering above her, she knew him. And their previous encounter- let's just say that Natasha couldn't think of worse.

"What do you want with Natasha?" Bruce cried.

The man chuckled ominously. "Nat and I have a rather interesting history. And who are you? Natasha's latest pet?"

"I'm no pet." Bruce growled. "I'm Dr. Bruce Banner, and if you-"

"Dr. Banner." The man realized, making the connection. "The angry green guy?"

"Oh yeah. And I'm two seconds away from letting him loose on you, buddy." Dr. Banner replied. "So, answer me. What do you want?"

"I come with a warning, Avengers." he said, spitting out the last word. "I have a plan to rule this world. So don't stand in my way, and I won't destroy everything you love and cherish. I know all your secrets! Tony Stark, what would happen if Pepper Potts suddenly realized you were cheating on her with someone else?" The man waved his hands and a pretty woman appeared with long auburn hair and deep green eyes.

"You wouldn't dare, you freak." Iron Man gasped.

"I would." the man said. "The Mighty Thor may not be so mighty after he realizes that the lovely Jane Foster has been thrown into Jotunheim for treachery against the Allfather."

"NO!" Thor yelled, as the man cackled in delight.

"And what about Steve Rogers's dear Peggy Carter? Or her daughter, Sharon, is it?" the man continued. "Could Captain America stand never seeing her again?"

"You fiend." Steve said. "Leave Peggy alone."

"And Bruce Banner." the man finished. "A time-bomb. Well, I just need you to be set off. That isn't very hard. But it'll be quite painful to see that Natasha Romanoff never loved you."

"That's not true." Natasha told Bruce. "He's lying, twisting your mind. Please, Bruce, trust me."

Bruce scoffed. "Trust you? You're a spy. You make a living lying. How can I trust you? Who is he, anyways? What does he mean to you?"

"I am the Warlock." the man screamed. "And I am here to see the Avengers die."

The Warlock vanished in a puff of smoke, and the audience screamed. Natasha's eyes rolled back in her head, and she fainted for the first time in her life.

"Natasha." Bruce whispered. "Natasha, please wake up."

Natasha's deep grey eyes fluttered open, and she gasped. "Where am I? This reminds me of that one time in Kiev."

"Nat, you're in the library." Serena explained. "After the Warlock vanished, you fainted, and Thor carried you here."

"Bruce insisted on doing it himself, but alas, he was unable." Thor added when Natasha raised an eyebrow.

Bruce winced. "Scientists don't weight-lift, that's all I can say."

"It's the thought that counts." Natasha joked. "But, where is Andre- I mean the Warlock?"

"We have no clue." Rebecca explained. "He just poofed out of the gym. It was like magic."

"That's because it is." Romanoff said. "I think I have a lot of explaining to do."

"You sure do." Bruce replied.

Natasha raised herself upright on the couch and leaned back, getting ready to tell the story. "Before the Warlock became what he is today, he was a mild-mannered professor of anthropology at New York University named Andrew Wedran. Very talented guy with a penchant for dead languages, and had a legendary comic book collection. One day, he discovered this book in a language that he had never heard of. So, he took his time to decipher it. He realized it was a book of ancient incantations and spells from hundreds of years ago. And he found that it actually worked."

"He used it for good, helping his students and friends with various things, and doing generous deeds for others. But when S.H.I.E.L.D. got wind of this, they wanted to send over an agent to monitor him, make sure nothing got out of hand. And that's where I came in. Under my alias of Natalie Rushman, I was assigned on the case by Director Fury himself. I infiltrated the University and began to sit in on Professor Wedran's lectures. I would leave miniature cameras and bugs whenever I was in the room, just to keep tabs on him. Unfortunately, Wedran was quite a smart man."

"He noticed me one night in the hall on a stakeout, and then, being a comic book fanatic he knew immediately who Natalie Rushman really was. His behaviour began to change in classes. He would treat me more kindly, more amicably. Less student and more friend. But one fateful day, he asked me to stay after class. He confessed he knew who I was. I tried to play dumb, but he recognized me even in my disguise of glasses and brown contact lenses. I had even dyed my hair brown, but I guess some of the red was still showing through. I'm not exactly a beautician. He, well..."

"What, what did he say?" Kim asked, intrigued.

"He asked to take me out for coffee." Natasha admitted.

"Don't tell me you agreed." Bruce groaned.

"I turned him down, flat out." Natasha answered. "In retrospect, I may have been rather harsh about it. Because I never saw him again. Director Fury told me he had stopped using his powers for good, but for personal gain. He became the Warlock, because of me. That one act of denial had pushed him over the edge, been the straw that broke the camel's back."

"Whoa." Julian gaped. "That's kinda psychopathic."

Tony stood up. "Guys, we've got to go now. It's quite late, and a school night. We should be ready for tomorrow and whatever fate has in store for us."

"Okay. I agree." Megan yawned. "Good night guys."

"Stay safe." William added.

Steve smiled weakly. "That's not a guarantee, but we'll definitely try. Good night, everyone."

"Auf wiedersehen." Nicole said. "That's goodbye in German."

"Why German?" Felix asked.

"Why not?" Nicole answered with a shrug. "Guten nacht, alle."

Steve and Natasha were sitting in the staff room the next morning during their prep period, having a discussion over coffee. Steve dropped a lump of sugar into his, and stirred.

"You take sugar?" Natasha scoffed, taking a sip of her own black coffee.

Steve shrugged. "So what?"

"Sugar is for the weak." Natasha joked. "Back in Europe, sweetener was unheard of. A travesty."

Ignoring her, Steve said, "So, coffee was the reason for the whole business with the Warlock guy."

Romanoff nodded, setting down her cup. "Oddly enough, yes." She then looked at Steve directly. "This whole business is absolutely driving me mad. Bruce now thinks that I have some sort of _romantic_ history with the Warlock. And I bet that I'm endangering my entire class by being around them. What if the Warlock takes his anger out on them? I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if they got hurt." She put her head in her hands, threading her fingers through her red curls.

"You're Natasha Romanoff," Steve said reassuringly, "the best spy and assassin in the business. You can handle anyone, even a nerd with magic powers. Especially a nerd with magic powers. And I'm sure the kids can handle themselves. You know, I bet that they'll try to help you."

Natasha lifted her head. "You think so?"

"Yeah." Steve answered. "They're tougher than they look, Natasha. They defeated a villain on their own before, no reinforcements. And you'll straighten things out with Bruce. He's just being jealous."

"With a track record like mine, he's got every right to." Natasha groaned.

"We're guys, Nat." Steve explained. "We're just naturally high-strung when it comes to women. Now, come on. I've got a class to teach, and you've got books to shelve."

"Oh, yes!" Natasha remembered. "I just put in an order for a couple Chekov novels, among other things. They should be arriving today."

Steve smiled. "Well, how about I get the kids to help you unpack the books? We all need a light moment in dark times, and you know how much they adore books of any sort."

"Don't you have a geography lesson to teach?" Natasha asked.

"Geography can wait." Steve said. "What they need is some literature." He said it with such gusto, Natasha began to laugh.

"And I can try to help straighten things out with Bruce, if you want." Steve offered.

"That'd be great." Natasha replied, standing up. She took her and Steve's empty coffee mugs and set them in the sink. They walked out of the staff room together, Captain America holding the door for Romanoff. Natasha fished the library key out of her pocket and opened the door. She then noticed the caretaker standing on the ladder next to her.

"Hello, Mr. Manych." she said politely. "What're you doing?"

"Just installing the signs over the library." Mr. Manych replied, descending the ladder. "What do you think?"

Natasha and Steve glanced up, and their eyes widened. Hanging over the door were two signs. Done in white lettering, the first one read _N. Romanoff_ and the second _S. Rogers_. Natasha's had a little hourglass-like symbol next to her name, and Steve's had a star surrounded by rings next to his.

"Wow. I guess we made our mark on this school, didn't we?" Steve said.

"I'd better get going." Mr. Manych said. "I still have to hang these up." He held up three other signs, reading _B. Banner_ , _T. Odinsson_ and _T. Stark_.

"Don't hang up that last one. Tony has a big enough ego as it is." Steve chuckled.

Mr. Manych gave a mock salute and walked off, the signs in his hands making metallic _clanks_ as they knocked together.

Just then, the bell rang to signal the end of second period, cueing the two Avengers to walk inside. A minute later, they heard a commotion outside the door.

"That must be them." Steve said, pacing to the door. He opened it, but 8F didn't walk inside.

"Where's Natasha?" Praveen asked.

"Just inside." Steve answered. "Instead of geography, you guys are going to help Nat unpack some new books." The class let out a cheer.

"That's great, but we also need to talk to Natasha about the Warlock." Megan said.

The class filed in, and Natasha walked towards them. "You wanted to see me?"

Julian and Talha stepped forward from the class.

"Natasha, we thought a bit, and we have decided to take some protective measures against the Warlock." Julian said. "We're calling it the Natasha Romanoff Protection Program, or the NRPP for short."

"You want to set up a protection program for an assassin?" Romanoff sputtered, completely in shock.

"Well, why not?" Talha asked. "You've always protected us from harm, and we're returning the favour for you."

"What makes you think I need protection?" Natasha asked.

Julian and Talha looked at each other, and said in unison, "The fact that you fainted last night when the Warlock showed up."

"I was just surprised." Natasha objected. "I don't need anything, really."

"Now, we need to lay out the guidelines for the NRPP." Megan continued, oblivious to Natasha's protests. "You cannot leave the library at any time."

"What about when I need to go home?" Natasha cried.

"We'll cross that hurdle when we get to it." Megan answered. "In the meantime, we'll get Steve or one of us to escort you. Next, you must be in the company of one other person at all times. Preferably an Avenger, so it'll probably be Dr. Banner."

The girls in the class giggled quietly, and Keegan, Will and Willem wolf-whistled. Romanoff covered her face, so no one would see her blush.

"And finally, we're turning the library into a defense system." Rudaina finished.

"What?" Natasha yelled.

"Booby-traps, cameras, alarm systems, the works." Katie said. "It'll be basically impenetrable. Tony will probably help us with some of the technological aspects, but yeah! It'll work perfectly."

"More covert and safe than Fort Knox and Area 51 put together." Ajay added.

"No, I-" Natasha began, but was cut off by Megan and Talha pushing her over to the couch.

Talha smiled reassuringly, handing Romanoff a stack of papers. "Take it easy, Nat. We've got this covered. Just sit back and read this fanfiction. We found it on the internet."

Natasha scanned the page. "62 things the Avengers are not allowed to do? What is this?"

"Read it and laugh hysterically." Megan answered.

Natasha looked and her eyes widened. "I feel like swearing very badly." And she let out a stream of curses in Russian. Nicole's mouth dropped open, getting the gist of things.

"Can someone bring the box of Chekov novels?" Natasha asked. "I need to clear my mind of that horrendous writing."

"On it." Praveen said, heading to the library office. He returned shortly, heaving a box labeled _Chekov_. Natasha pulled out a knife from a pocket in her skirt (no one wanted to ask how it got there), and slit open the top. She pulled out one entitled  The Seagull, and opened it up.

"This is real writing." Natasha sighed. "He's never ceased to amaze me."

The students headed off, some unpacking books and others heading upstairs.

"We're getting equipment." Ajay explained before heading off with the others.

Natasha quirked her lip, and glanced back down at The Seagull. "Now, can someone get me a coffee? I need some more caffeine in my system."

 **Chapter 15**

Tony didn't expect to see what he saw in the library. Hauling a box of tools and building materials with him, he entered the library to see the Black Widow drinking coffee while reading a book, surrounded by students drawing maps and making plans and blueprints.

"What on Earth are you doing?" Tony gawked at the students.

"The NRPP." Megan replied. "We're making a map of the library as it will be in the next couple days. We're drawing where the traps, alarms and cameras will eventually be."

Tony inspected a nearby blueprint. "And what is this? It looks interesting."

"We're planning to remodify the pencil sharpener so it'll eject a stream of pencil shavings when it senses an intruder." William explained. "Using face recognition and a photograph of the Warlock, we can make it go off if he enters."

"Very well done." Tony mused, absentmindedly running a finger over the edge of the paper. "It's well constructed, and I don't see any technological faults within the system."

"You taught us well, Senpai." Rebecca joked. "We learned from the best."

"Hold on. Sen-what?" Tony asked.

Rebecca laughed at his confusion. "It's nothing. Really."

The famous inventor shuffled through more of the papers, observing the different inventions. "These are all very good designs. Well done. This motion activated trapdoor has an excellent mechanism. And the chemical formula for this long duration glue looks great."

"Thanks." Rudaina said, beaming with pride.

"Really, adding the sodium chloride to the mix was a very smart idea." Tony replied.

Rudaina nodded, and walked towards a pile of blueprints, thinking _oh my God, Tony Stark just called me smart._

Natasha ambled over to Tony. "Pretty good, right?" she said.

Tony nodded. "Yeah. At their age, I was doing just as well. And just to remind you, I am a genius."

Romanoff rolled her eyes at Tony's bravado. "Good grief, Stark."

"What?" Tony whined. "I had at least ten scholarships when I was thirteen, for _college_."

Natasha arched an eyebrow. "Ten?"

"Okay, so it was four." Tony admitted. "But you've got to admit it was impressive."

"I shouldn't say anything that'll make you any more of a narcissist, Tony." Natasha replied honestly.

Tony raised his hands in mock-submission. "I surrender."

Praveen rushed up to the two Avengers. "Coffee?" he asked Tony, offering a cup full of the steaming beverage.

"Coffee?" Tony asked. "Who is he, your personal butler?"

Natasha laughs. "Do you want the coffee or not, Stark?"

"Hell, yes." Tony said eagerly, grabbing the coffee. "Can there be a Tony Stark Protection Program as well? Because I like the free drink service."

"Is that all?" Natasha bantered back at him.

"Pretty much." Tony noted. Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Serena! We don't use an adjustable spanner to hit Willem over the head."

"We don't?" Serena asked innocently, Willem standing next to her and clutching his head.

A couple hours later, and after two more cups of coffee, the students were finishing up their lunches. Unbeknownst to the others, Nicole, Dexter, Megan and Hannah were working on a very important project.

"Can you pass me the bolts, Dexter?" Megan asked.

Dexter nodded, rummaging through the toolbox. "Hold on, I'm getting them." He reached further in to triumphantly pull out a handful of them. "Here they are."

"Thanks." Megan answered, reaching for the bolts. Dexter dropped them into her outstretched hand and Megan leaned back to her work, fitting a nut to each of the bolts and screwing them into a metal plate under the bookcase.

"Hannah, I just finished the locking mechanism." Nicole called. "If Megan's ready, we can try the door."

"Yes, but let's call everyone else." Hannah said. "They've got to see this. We've been working so hard on it, it'd be an insult if they didn't see it before anyone else."

"Good point." Megan replied. "And I am ready, so we can call everyone over to see."

Dexter stood up, brushing dust off his jeans. "I'll go get everyone." He eagerly rushed off to the classroom area, where the Avengers had joined the students for lunch.

"Hello, Dexter." Tony greeted through a mouthful of his elaborately concocted brie, apple, turkey and Dijon mustard sandwich (courtesy of the one and only Pepper Potts). "Haven't you ate lunch yet?"

Dexter shook his head. "No, and neither have Hannah, Megan and Nicole."

"Well, why haven't they?" Dr. Banner asked, finishing his thermos of Indian-style chicken curry.

"We've been working on a project." Dexter answered. "We wanted to show you guys how it turned out."

"Sounds intriguing." Natasha said, setting down her salad. "I'd love to see it."

Thor nodded. "So would I."

"Well, come on then." Dexter said. "Prepare for your mind to be blown."

Soon enough, the rest of the class and the Avengers had assembled in front of the bookshelf on the back wall. Hannah had walked over to the comic book section and pulled out a volume of the _Avengers_ series. She knelt down to the vent and slipped the graphic novel in. There was an audible inhalation as the bookshelf split down the middle vertically and opened to see an elevator.

"Wow." Tony gaped.

Everyone hurried into the elevator. It was a tight squeeze, but everyone managed to fit in. As it descended, you could hear every single person complaining about the size of the elevator.

 _Bruce, could you move a little bit?_

 _Tony, get off my foot!_

 _Who's wearing perfume?_

 _Oh... OH! Sorry Nat._

 _Ow, Praveen. You elbowed me._

 _Jules, your hair is in my face._

 _Now I know what being between a rock and a hard place means, ouch._

 _Julian, are you all right?_

 _Thor, did you really have to bring Mjolnir with you?_

When the elevator finally opened, the Avengers and students fell out in an undignified heap.

"Next time," Talha muttered, "we go in ten at a time. Not one person more."

He received a grumble of assent at his words, as they dusted themselves off and stood up. Nicole paced over to the keypad, and entered a password.

"Alright." she instructed. "This is Bunker 8FA. A high-security lockdown facility made for sheltering from attacks on the school. Getting in is a two-step process. One, a password. The password for now is _Reindeer Games_ , because tell me how many people would guess that. No one. Part two is a thumbprint scan. If your thumbprint is in the database, it'll disable all the traps in the building. If it isn't, you'll be allowed access, but have to face a very complicated trap that leaves you in a bit of a predicament. My thumbprint is the master key of sorts, and is the only one that can add or delete prints from the database. So, get in line so I can record yours."

They did what they were told and Nicole entered their prints one at a time into the computer. "Perfect, thanks. Now you can get in without setting off the greatest trap of all time."

"Repeat that?" Natasha asked.

"Well, we had the idea to make a completely foolproof trap that totally freaks out the enemy. And while we'd love to show it, it's a bit... messy." Megan said. "We're looking at an eight meter drop that fills with liquid cement and a metal gate closes off the top. The walls are completely smooth, making it even more impossible to get out. And then, just for the fun of it, we dump a gallon of ketchup on the victim."

"That's hard core." Keegan said. "Sounds like a nightmare."

"Now, who wants to get in the bunker?" Hannah asked. Every person's hand shot up. "Natasha, want to do the honours?"

"With pleasure." Romanoff replied and pressed her thumb to the keypad. In two seconds, the steel door slid open, and Nicole gestured inside grandly.

"Welcome to Bunker 8FA." she declared.

"Oh my God." the students said as one.

 **Chapter 16**

"You call this a bunker?" Steve laughed. "It's fancier than some of the rooms at Stark Tower."

"Hey, the rooms at the Tower are quite fancy, thank you very much." Tony retorted.

But Bunker 8FA was a state of the art room. Its chrome-polished walls were soundproof from the outside, and the Bunker was littered with couches and beanbag chairs in a variety of different colours. Different doors led to places such as the War Room, where battle planning and tactics were to be sorted out, the Equipment Room, filled with all the best weaponry, and the Rations Room.

"That's just a fancy way of saying: that's where all the snacks are." Dexter explained.

Tony poked his head into the Rations Room. "Is that a mini fridge?" he cried. "And an espresso machine? Holy Thor, you guys thought of everything."

"Dexter insisted on the espresso machine." Megan added.

Nicole opened the door to the Equipment Room. "I've developed some of my own field gadgets, ready to use. I was working for a long time on the prototypes, and here they are- fully developed."

The students eagerly inspected the devices in front of them.

"Look at this." Julian said, holding up a little jar and read off the description. "Miniature lighting shocks. Invisible to the naked eye, when heated to over thirty five degrees Celsius give off powerful shocks almost as strong as Thor's hammer."

"And this." Johan said, brandishing a translucent bottle. "Disguised as eye drops, this is actually controlled rope corrosive fluid."

"This earring is a surround amplifier." Praveen noted. "Lets you listen in on all conversations."

Nicole walked towards a glass box. Pulling a key from a sweater pocket, she opened the box to pull out a gadget that looked like a simple metal rod. "This is my personal pride and joy. The Emergency Gamma Radiation Neutralizer. Can temporarily neutralize any source of gamma rays from up to twenty meters away."

"Does that mean it could stop the... the Other Guy?" Bruce stuttered out.

When he received a nod as his answer, Dr. Banner let out a triumphant cry and embraced Natasha. "This is the solution to all our problems, to everything! I don't have to be a monster, not anymore."

Nicole watched the scene with a smile and misty eyes. She walked over to the doctor and Romanoff and pressed the device into Bruce's hand. "Use it well."

"But, how? When we've been struggling all these years to find a cure, a thirteen year old comes along and solves our problems." Tony asked.

"Using pre-existing research, I theorized that getting the ions to act on each other could counteract the effects. With sonic wavelength technology similar to that in the SWAGun, I got the waves to trigger depolarization of the gamma ions. Instead of acting on Dr. Banner, they act on each other and therefore neutralize themselves." Nicole explained. "It works for up to twenty four hours, so far only temporary."

"Of course." Bruce said. "How did we not think of that before? It's actually perfectly logical."

"It's science." Dexter stage-whispered, and the others laughed.

Bruce looked at the gadget in his's hand, and then back at its creator. "Thank you." he said.

"It's nothing." Nicole replied.

Walking out of the Equipment Room, the Avengers discussed what they'd do next.

"We should call Agent Barton in." Steve suggested. "At a time like this, reinforcements would be helpful."

"I think we've got enough assassins to deal with." Tony joked, looking pointedly at Natasha. Natasha exhaled through her teeth and punched Tony's shoulder. "Ow, I was just kidding, Nat."

"Save it, Stark." Natasha muttered.

"Ooh, nice alliteration." William commented.

Natasha smirked. "Really? I hadn't noticed." She took out her phone and speed-dialed Clint.

"Hello?" a voice on the other end said. "Natasha?"

"Hey, Clint? What's up?" Natasha answered.

"Nothing much, Nat. Why're you calling?" Clint replied.

"Remember the Warlock?"

"Yes, I think. That one idiot who asked you out for coffee?"

"That's the one."

"Well, what's with him?"

"He's back. And he wants revenge."

"No, really?"

"Yeah. Awful, right?"

"Do you need me to come over and help? I presume that's why you called."

"Yes, it is. Where are you now?"

"The safe house, with Laura and the kids."

"You aren't too busy, are you Clint?"

"No, no. Laura's fine. Even Lila is helping take care of little Nate."

"Oh, that's so sweet. Send them my love, will you?"

"I'll tell them Auntie Nat says hello. I'll see you soon."

"Bye, Clint. Safe travels." Natasha finished, hanging up.

"He said yes, right?" Kim asked.

"Of course." Natasha replied. "Clint owes me a couple favours. Plus, it's the first rule of the Assassin's Code."

The students exchanged confused glances. "The Assassin's Code?" Julian asked.

Natasha's eyes widened. "Oh, you've got to be kidding. I've never taught you the Assassin's Code, have I? Well, every assassin makes this pledge before becoming one officially. Rule number one is _never turn your back on an assassin in need_. It's only got the amendment _unless the assassin in question is on the opposite side from you_."

"What happens if you break the Code?" Keegan asked.

"Eternal punishment." Nat deadpanned. "No, actually you are stripped of your title as a licensed assassin. Which is not good for business. Sure, you can go around killing people, but you get no payment. You must be licensed in order to be hired and paid."

"That got morbid very quickly." Katie whispered to Rebecca, who laughed.

"Yeah, it kind of did." Rebecca replied. "Assassin's Code. Remind me to learn all the rules so we can annoy Nat about it."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Katie asked.

"No, but it'd be so worth it." Rebecca giggled.

Thor had meanwhile walked over to the espresso machine. "How does this mortal device work?" he boomed.

"Oh," Dexter rushed over, "Just put a cup under here, and press the button here. Simple."

Thor watched in wonder as the machine filled the cup with a steaming, fresh espresso. He took the tiny cup as the machine finished, and drank it all in one shot. "Excellent." he declared. "Another!" And before anyone could stop him, he threw the cup to the ground.

"We should have expected that." Willem said.

"Well, this is the perfect opportunity." Hannah said.

"What?" Willem asked. "Opportunity for what?"

"To show you guys the cleaning robot I built." Hannah said. "I haven't thought of a name for it yet, though. Well, this 'bot is a portable, multi-surface cleaner that is basically a simpler version of J.A.R.V.I.S. It's got similar code and stuff, but much less complex. Made for a singular task." Hannah explained.

"T. A. S. H. A.!" Jules cried. "It works."

"Yes? What?" Natasha asked.

"No. It's an acronym. Stands for: Transportable All Surface Housework Apparatus." Jules answered. "Hannah, you've got your name."

"That took nearly less time than to make an espresso." Steve chuckled. "Well done."

"And it makes sense, because T.A.S.H.A. was built for the NRPP." Hannah realized, while pulling out the robot. It was white and boxy, with two retractable arms and a series of buttons on top of the robot. Two lights on the front made it seem like it had 'eyes'.

"Remind me to start a robotics team at this school." Tony said. "There's potential here. Hannah here can be our first member."

Hannah blushed proudly at the recognition as she started the robot up, and it began to sweep up the mess. "Thanks, Tony. Sounds great."

"But wait until you see the Disco Room." Dexter added.

"The what?" Steve asked.

"Hold on, Steve. You don't know what _disco_ is?" Natasha realized.

"He became a Capsicle in 1945, he completely missed the sixties." Tony gasped.

William smiled. "Well, don't just stand there. Dexter, get on YouTube and search up the Bee Gees."

Dexter did just that, and turned up _Staying Alive_ to full volume.

"Their voices. Are they actually guys? It's so... high." Steve asked, shocked.

"Yeah." Praveen said. "Doesn't it sound like they haven't gone through puberty?"

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence.

"Making it weird again, Praveen." Jules complained.

Praveen shrugged, oblivious as usual. "What? It does."

"I thought you had like perfect pitch, Praveen. Doesn't that mean you'd know what a falsetto is?" Johan asked.

"I know what a falsetto is, I just wanted to make a joke." Praveen scowled. "And just because I do have perfect pitch, it doesn't mean I have to know what a falsetto is. But for the record, I do know."

Johan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's great, Pranav."

Praveen turned a deep shade of crimson, and remained quiet, silently swearing to himself that he would not try and make any jokes ever again. Meanwhile, Dexter led everyone to a small room in the corner of the bunker.

"I combined two awesome things, disco and booby traps in here." Dexter gestured. "Using a top secret explosive mixture, when the wrong people get in here, we go boom." He spread the fingers on his hands for emphasis.

"Boom?" Doctor Banner asked.

"Boom." Dexter confirmed. "Ka-blam, bang, ex-plo-sion. Observe." He pressed a finger to a glittering button, and a disco ball descended from the ceiling. It began to spin in a frenzy of bright lights and colours. He then pressed the red button next to it, and smoke spewed from the ball. A loud beeping sound emanated from the ball and then there was a burst of white light. It startled everyone, even the unflappable Agent Romanoff. Captain America leapt back with a yell, Tony screamed, and Doctor Banner cowered behind Natasha.

Natasha got over her initial shock, and gently pried Bruce's hands off her shoulders. "Bruce, it's okay. You're not going to Hulk out over such a small thing. I think you can handle it on your own."

Doctor Banner blushed uneasily. At least his face was red and not green. "Sorry Tasha."

Natasha shook her head ruefully as she stepped away. Peering inside the room, she could see the blackened remains of a disco ball lying on the floor. "What just happened here?"

"Boom." Dexter answered.

"Bozhe moy." Natasha groaned.

 **Chapter 17**

"So how are we going to deal with the Warlock?" Steve asked.

Johan thought for a bit. "Well, it's going to be complex. He doesn't seem like an easy person to defeat."

"That's what he said." Keegan joked, and a couple students laughed.

"Oh, so when the white kid makes a joke, it's funny." Praveen blustered. "That's racist."

"Racist? How is that even racist?" Julian asked.

"Everything is racist." Praveen countered.

"No, there is a simple and logical explanation here. Keegan is funny and you aren't." Willem said.

"Oh, roasted." the class chorused.

Praveen walked off to the War Room, grumbling something about _miniature Donald Trump_. Keegan rolled his eyes.

"Maybe we should just sleep on it. I doubt we'll need any good ideas soon because we're so well protected, it'd take a miracle for the Warlock to get in here." Natasha commented.

"Good point." Talha agreed. "I'm with Natasha, let's just leave it be for now. We can come back to it."

"Lunch is almost over, so you've got to get back to class." Tony said. "Which way out? And please don't say the elevator. I've got enough of being wedged between Spangles and Point Break here." He gestured to Captain America and Thor respectively. "Seriously, guys. You're rock solid."

"Jealous, Man of Iron?" Thor teased.

"Yeah, he just realized he needs a suit to be classified as iron hard." Steve quipped.

"Oh, you want to go a few rounds?" Tony asked. "You wanna go, huh?"

"Men." Natasha groaned to the girls. "Girls, when you find a boyfriend, make sure he's smarter than these two put together."

"That's impossible." Tony said. "Do I have to remind you that I am a genius?"

"You know what I mean, Stark." Natasha said. "And Steve, I expected better from you. Is all that 'God's righteous man' stuff even true?"

"Sorry, Nat. You're right." Steve admitted. "I shouldn't waste my time flattening him."

"Hey!" Tony yelled. "You know what, I'm going to put on my suit so-"

"So you can have a decent chance at besting me?" Steve taunted.

"Men." The girls spoke in unison.

"So, which way is the exit?" Bruce asked.

"Follow me." Megan said. She walked out of Bunker 8FA with the rest of the team behind her. She walked down a gray corridor dimly lit by dangling lightbulbs. Megan made a couple quick turns and reached a staircase. They all climbed up, and opened the door. It led to a small room filled with science equipment. Opening another door, they could see they reached Mr. Stark's classroom.

"Whoa, so that's what that door leads to." Hannah said. "Too bad. I was convinced it was a TARDIS."

"Well, mystery solved." Felix said. "Elementary, my dear Watson." He stroked an imaginary beard, pretending to be Sherlock Holmes.

"Did Sherlock actually have a beard?" Katie questioned.

"That doesn't matter." Tony said quickly before they could go off tangent. "How did these tunnels get in here? Four of you can't have built this. And Hannah- who was one of the bunker engineers- was surprised to see this."

"We actually found this by pure accident." Dexter commented. "Like a fluke. Stroke of luck. We just installed doors and made the bunker."

"Then, the question we should be asking is how did get there?" Steve said. "Could this be a trap? Bait of sorts?"

"I doubt it." Ajay said. "If anything, it's something that was abandoned long ago. Or something that connected two places."

"Could we be excused from music so we can explore this place?" Rudaina asked. "We could find something huge down there. Like a passage to, I don't know, Asgard?"

"That is impossible." Thor boomed. "Only Heimdall controls the ways between worlds."

"Well, there could be anything down there. Things Heimdall only dreams of. Things even Odin knows nothing of." Rudaina said. "So let's go and check things out. If it's alright with you, of course."

"We'll have to come, then." Steve said. "There's no way you're going down there without us. Safety precautions, and all that."

"We've survived a full-scale battle. We can handle ourselves." Serena said.

"We just want to come and see what's there." Tony said eagerly. "So, what are we waiting for? Can we go?"

Thor thought for a bit, after all, they would be missing music. "Oh why not? I cannot lie, I would like to see what lies under this school."

"Great." Vivian said. "Let's see what this school has hidden from us."

The group of heroes ventured down the stairs, each step preceded by caution.

"Who had the brilliant notion to do this again?" Rudaina grumbled.

"You did." Vivian replied.

"Oh, yeah." Rudaina said. "Never again. I feel like this'll end badly."

"Or maybe we'll discover a passage to Asgard." Willem quipped.

Rudaina threw her head back in exasperation. "Stop it! I mean it."

The students laughed, continuing down the steps.

Thor beckoned the students down another hall, this one more dimly lit than the rest. A brown spider crawled up the wall, uncomfortably close to Katie, who let out a shriek of fright.

Water dripped from an exposed pipe in an almost metronomic way. The drops collided with the ground, creating a steady rhythm. Absentmindedly, Hannah started to hum the first few bars of Bohemian Rhapsody, which the eighth graders had learned two years before in vocal class. The humming turned into quiet singing. Hearing this, Nicole started to sing along, delving into a harmony. Rebecca joined in, with Praveen not far behind. The class then unexpectedly burst into the next part of the song: _Mama, just killed a man..._ Natasha shrugged and joined in on _put a gun against his head, pulled the trigger, now he's dead..._ A couple students paused to laugh at the perfect timing. Thor added a resounding bass to the chorus, the floor and walls seeming to shake. Captain America and Dr. Banner also started to sing in a lower register. But just as they started to sing _I see a little silhouetto of a man_ , they heard a terrible screeching.

"What is that?" Jules cried, covering her ears. "It sounds like a hyena being run over by a lawnmower. Or bagpipes being thrown in a blender at high speed." Kim winced, and tried not to yell about how awful this was.

"It sounds like the KGB all over again." Natasha complained.

"It's Tony singing." Bruce said, being observant as usual.

Hannah gaped. "Nobody can be that off-key."

"Guess again." Keegan said, pointing at Tony (who was still singing, blissfully oblivious).

Tony finally stopped, noticing that all eyes were on him. "Yeah, that good, am I?" he said. Apparently he was oblivious to the fact that he was tone deaf.

"That was... something." Julian tried to skate around the truth.

"Really, an interesting interpretation." William added. "It emphasizes the mood of the song."

"Definitely." Hannah chimed in.

Tony grinned. "I know. People tell me that they can't be in the same room with me when I sing. It's otherworldly, I guess."

"Yeah, that." Will said. "For sure. Otherworldly. That's the exact term I'd use for it."

But before the students could make any more awkward comments, they reached a steel door at the end of the hall.

"Well, well." Kim mused quietly. "What's this?"

Johan grinned as he said, "A door."

Black Widow rolled her eyes as she stepped closer to the entrance. Her perfectly manicured finger brushed a layer of dust off a symbol painted on the steel. As she gently traced the diamond encircled by a flaming ring, she muttered, "It's his mark. The Warlock was here."

"Or maybe this is his super-secret villain lair." Serena said.

"Not so secret anymore." Talha noted. "How do we get in?"

The students jumped as a voice answered, "There's a keypad."

"Clint!" Natasha exclaimed.

Katie blinked furiously at the archer behind them. "How did you get here?"

"Assassins need to know how to find their targets." Black Widow said. "Clint, do you have any exploding arrows on you?"

"Yes, but I can deduce they won't be strong enough to knock the door down." Agent Barton said. "Let's just try and guess the password."

Nicole stepped up. "Allow me." Her fingers flew across the keypad as she typed in _Coffee is a metaphor for love._ The door flew open instantly. She stepped back with a self-satisfied smirk on her face.

"Wha..." Praveen trailed off.

"How did you..." Taylor gaped.

"Lucky guess." Julian scoffed.

But as they stepped inside, they gasped unanimously.

Natasha covered her eyes. "I can't look at this. I can look at a battlefield littered with corpses and I can't look at this. What on earth is this?"

Bruce took the sight in. "It-it's like a-a shrine. To _you_ , Nat."

Dr. Banner wasn't sugar-coating it. The room was covered in pictures, posters, action figures, and collectables of the legendary Black Widow. Basically everything to do with Natasha Romanoff.

Tony whistled through his teeth. "This is more memorabilia of any one person than Stark Expo and my fangirls' collections put together. Impressive." He looked at the dumbstruck doctor, and nudged him. "Hey, Bruce. Is this your version of heaven?"

"Shut. Up." Bruce growled, half-heartedly. He glanced over at Rudaina, Ajay and Willem, who had wandered over to a filing cabinet. "What are you doing?" he asked the trio.

"We've found something... very interesting." Ajay commented, holding a file in the air. He set it on a nearby table, and the team crowded around. Willem opened the file, and extracted carefully a stack of photographs. At the sight, Natasha swore very loudly.

"Language, Natasha." Steve admonished.

"Sorry." Natasha replied.

Spread out on the table in front of them were dozens of photos of Natasha in various locations. Natasha chatting with Bruce in his classroom, Natasha drinking a cup of coffee, Natasha half asleep in the staff room. Each, to Natasha, were more embarrassing than the last.

"I'll just take these for safekeeping." Tony said, reaching for the pictures. Natasha angrily slapped his hand away.

"Don't even think about it, Tony." Natasha grumbled. "If you take one picture, I'll use _my_ blackmail."

Tony's eyes bulged. "You have blackmail? I probably shouldn't ask, but what exactly?"

"You do not want to know." Romanoff retorted. "But if you really do, here's a hint. January the second, 2015."

Tony thought for a bit before screaming, "HOW?"

"I left my revolver in Stark Tower after the New Year's party." Natasha explained. "Since all the Avengers have keys, I had the misfortune of coming across you and-"

"Don't say it!" Tony said. "Privacy."

"Oh, but Mr. Stark, there is no privacy in blackmail."

"Damn it all."

"Watch your language, Tony."

"You sound like Captain Spangles."

"You sound like an idiot. No difference there." Natasha insulted. She rapidly swept the photographs into a paper shredder and turned it on.

The Avengers watched the images turn into strips in front of their eyes. Both Tony and Clint looked regretfully at the pictures that they could've used as the world's greatest blackmail. Bruce lunged out quickly and grabbed a picture of him and Natasha before it could be shredded. Breathing a sigh of relief, he stowed it in his pocket. The only one to see, Rose offered him a sympathetic smile.

But before the Avengers could investigate anymore, a red light started to flash and alarms started to blare.

"We've got to get out of here." Captain America yelled, already rushing out the door.

The rest of the team followed, but paused at the exit. They saw that Katie was still taking files from the room.

"Katie, we must go. Now." Thor ordered, running back to get Katie. He grabbed her arm and looked at her urgently.

Reluctantly Katie went with him, but not before stowing the files she salvaged under her arm. Clint shot two arrows at the cameras in the room and fled after the others.

 **Chapter 18**

The Avengers and the students burst out of the underground tunnels and into the library, breathing heavily from the rapid getaway they made.

"That was too close." Felix commented, brushing a trail of sweat off his hairline.

The students nodded, some already sitting on the ground from exhaustion. Rudaina flopped on the ground, while Jennifer straggled over to an armchair. Willem just fell asleep right on the floor. Serena laughed and poked him with her toe.

"Ehhm-uhh-wehhk." Willem groaned, meaning _I'm awake_. Of course, the others didn't understand.

Clint elbowed Natasha. "You're the one with a knack for languages. What's he saying?"

"I don't speak Half Asleep. Only English, French, Spanish, Russian and Latin." Natasha replied. "You try deciphering him."

Serena thought for a second. "I'm an idiot?"

"Hey!" Willem protested, suddenly alert. "Am not."

The students laughed at his sudden change of state. Willem just looked at them, annoyed at being woken up by being insulted (the very definition of a rude awakening).

"What can a guy do to get some sleep around here?" Willem muttered.

"Soldiers don't sleep, Willem." Captain America reprimanded teasingly.

Natasha smirked. "Oh yeah? What about that undercover mission in Tuvalu?"

"We do not talk about Tuvalu." Steve grumbled. "Their only landmarks are a postal office and a church."

Ignoring him, Natasha kept talking. "Steve got so jet-lagged on the flight there, he fell asleep right when we were about to burst into the target's apartment. In case anyone was wondering, I single-handedly busted that crime ring. And _then_ he got food poisoning from the food there. Apparently pulaka doesn't agree with Cap's stomach."

"It's a crop from a swamp! How can it agree with anyone's stomach?" Steve blustered angrily.

"I thought it was pretty good." Natasha said. "Tasted like a sweet potato, but a bit drier."

"Yeah, well, you were in the KGB." Steve protested. "They probably force-fed you poison there."

Tony burst out laughing hysterically. "Good one, Spangles. How long were you saving that?"

"Since the 1940s." Natasha giggled.

"For about a month now." Steve corrected. "I thought of it one day, and have been saving it ever since."

"I think I'm rubbing off on him." Tony said proudly.

"You say that like it's a good thing." Julian laughed.

"And it is." Tony replied. "I'm forever a positive influence."

"In a parallel universe." Talha added.

"While this is a good conversation, we've got to get back on topic." Clint said. "We've found some pretty odd things down there."

"Yeah, I agree." Julian said. "It was kind of terrifying."

"Too much Natasha to handle." Tony joked.

"Still, why is the Warlock here? What does he want?" Rudaina asked.

"That I don't know." Natasha answered. "But what was it that he said at the information night?"

William shuddered as he remembered, "I am here to see the Avengers die." He thought for a second. "My guess is that he'd like to take over the world and kill the Avengers. But not Black Widow, because he's kind of obsessed. And once he achieves this, he'll prove to Widow that he's better and stronger than Dr. Banner, therefore ending her grief for him and ta-da, coffee date at last."

"Good deduction, Gwee." Katie said. "That sounds logical. Get to the girl by getting to the people she loves the most."

"But, does that mean we're a target too?" William asked.

Natasha sighed. "The Warlock will stop at nothing to get what he wants, so I'm assuming yes."

You could hear a pin drop in the deathly quiet that followed. No one spoke, because no one could find anything to say. They were all targets. Every last one of them could be killed in the days, weeks and maybe even months that followed. No one was safe as long as the Warlock was alive. No one was safe from his wrath.

"We'll stop him." Praveen said. "Us? Afraid of a little magic? The Warlock should be afraid of us. The mighty Avengers and... Oh, we don't even have a team name!"

"We're 8F. Did you forget?" Julian asked.

Tony rolled his eyes. "Boring. What about Squadron 8?"

"Too unrecognizable." Felix said.

"How about Teen Triumph?" Tony said.

"Sounds like the name of a lousy boy band." Praveen answered.

"The Conquest Corps?" Tony asked.

"We're not supervillains." Rudaina commented.

"Well, what about-" Tony began

Having enough of the conversation, Natasha interrupted, "The Prodigies. Now, everyone show up tomorrow at eight AM sharp. Not a minute after. We have a war to win." And she was right.

The next morning, every student arrived five minutes early to the meeting. Taking seats in the library classroom, Steve and Natasha got up to the front of the room to head the meeting. Picking up a whiteboard marker, Natasha made a quick sketch of the underground villain lair in juxtaposition to where everything else was.

"Here we are." Natasha gestured. "And here is the Warlock's hideout."

"Question." Tony said, writing something on a sheet of paper. "If the hideout is inside, do they call it a hide-in?"

Ignoring him, Natasha moved on. "We'll need to set up cameras in the lair so we can monitor the Warlock's activity. Once he's in, we'll take him by surprise. We chase him out of there and then capture him someplace where there's a guarantee of no collateral damage."

Tony gestured at Julian and Rose to show them what he'd been doing on his paper. He had artfully drawn a caricature of Nat dressed up like a general barking orders at Steve, Clint and Bruce, who were grovelling at her feet. It was, surprisingly, a good drawing. Julian snickered quietly while Rose pursed her lips to keep herself from laughing.

"Never pictured you as an artist." Rose whispered to Stark.

"Everyone has their secrets." Tony replied quietly.

"To attention, Stark." Natasha barked at him. "I won't tolerate you missing my instructions."

Tony gave Nat a mock salute in return. "Yest, moy general."

Gritting her teeth, Natasha turned back to the whiteboard. "I have the sudden urge to slap you across your smug little face. And don't think that I can't see that drawing of yours. By the way, your accent is horrible."

Tony winced and slipped the drawing into his bag, lying nearby. "Sorry." he said, not really meaning it.

"Now, if we chase him out, we'll need an evacuation plan for the rest of the school. Just in case things get a little crazy." Steve said. "So, Thor, Clint, Bruce and Nat will take eighteen students and help the others in the school get down to..." He paused, not sure.

"Bunker 8FA." Megan answered. "You'll find a staircase in the War Room that leads down to an extra Emergency Evacuation room. Don't worry, we thought of everything."

"Great, thanks." Steve replied. "So, Tony and I will take... how about Jules, Johan, Rudaina, Julian, Talha, Felix and Ajay? The rest, help the students, guard them. Nat, Clint, choose some students to be at the back of the group. If the Warlock gets away, we need you and at least five students to fend him off."

Clint thought for a second. "Willem, Katie, Nicole, Vivian and Megan. Will that work?"

"Perfect." Steve nodded.

"A sound plan." Thor said. "We shall destroy the puny mortal."

"Well, maybe not destroy." Rose added hastily. "Just imprison for life and such. I mean, how hard could it be?"

 **Chapter 19**

The Avengers and the Prodigies had nothing to do. While Clint was installing surveillance cameras in the Warlock's lair, Natasha had given the students some time outside. She asked Steve, who had a free period at the time, to look after the kids. Natasha had a mission.

Walking at a fast pace down the grade six hallway, she stopped in front of Dr. Banner's room. She gently tapped on the door. "Bruce? It's Natasha. I wanted to talk."

She stepped back and waited. "Come in." Bruce called from inside.

Natasha strode in to see Bruce at his desk, holding the Emergency Gamma Radiation Neutralizer. He stood up when he saw her coming towards him.

"This is remarkable, you know." Bruce said, referring to the gadget in his hands. "When I lost hope in ever being a normal guy, here's this invention. We really struck gold with this group of kids."

"We did." Natasha replied with a smile. "It's fantastic how much we've bonded. All of us. I think it's really brought the team together."

Bruce nodded. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I wanted to set things straight with the Warlock." Natasha began. "He and I have no romantic connection whatsoever. He's just an over-obsessed geek, and me? Well, how should I put this? I have someone else." She paused and let her words sink in. "Someone who's smart, compassionate and a wonderful, amazing guy. The biggest nerd I know. And I don't want it any other way."

"But I thought you liked the Warlock." Bruce said.

"Me? Like that weirdo?" Natasha scoffed. "I have better taste in guys."

"Oh, um. I guess you do." Bruce replied. "Of course you do."

Natasha smiled. "Bruce, don't ever think that I like anyone else but you."

The doctor reached into his pocket and brought out a perfectly wrapped box. "Happy birthday, by the way.

"But, Bruce, it's not my birthday." Natasha said.

"I know. But I wanted to give you this anyways." Bruce laughed.

Natasha took the parcel from him and unwrapped it carefully. Taking out the box, she opened the lid with a gasp. "Bruce, it's _wonderful_." Inside was a simple emerald pendant held by a silver chain. Natasha eagerly put it on. "I love you, by the way."

Bruce took a deep breath, and began to lean towards Nat. Understanding what he was getting at, Natasha moved towards him as well. Inches away from each other, Bruce thought _it's now or never_.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" A smug voice came from the door and the two Avengers jerked apart.

"God damn it, Tony!" Bruce yelled frustratedly.

Chuckling, Tony ambled over to the fuming pair and put his arms around the both of them. "Now, isn't this sweet?"

"Not anymore." Bruce muttered.

Just then, Natasha's phone rang. Quickly answering it, she said, "Hello?"

"Nat, the Warlock just entered the lair." Clint's voice replied. "We need to move. Now."

Jules, Johan, Rudaina, Julian, Talha, Felix and Ajay rushed with Captain America and Iron Man to get suited up in the Equipment Room.

"Alright, everyone." Tony said. "Get ready, equipped and whatnot. I advise getting lots of guns. LOTS."

"Whoa, okay, someone's a little gun-happy today." Captain America said.

"Did you just say 'gun happy'? You did not just say that." Tony laughed.

"Focus." Cap said, slightly annoyed. "Whatever weapons you feel comfortable with, use. Take as much as you need."

"I advise the new Flame 20.5." Tony said, lugging a large gun and handing it to Ajay. "Not only does it function as a gun, but a flame-thrower as well."

"Cool." Ajay commented. "Can I try it out?"

"NOT HERE!" everyone yelled.

Moving on, Iron Man pointed at Jules. "Jules, step right up. I've got just the thing for you."

"Is it food?" Jules asked jokingly. "I could really go for some shawarma."

Iron Man laughed. "No, I wish. But I have the perfect weapon." He handed her a jar filled with green pellets. "These are Stun Shots. Load them into any type of gun and they will explode with a burst of toxic gas that will temporarily paralyse and knock out your adversary."

"Sweet." Jules said. "But just to clarify, we can't eat them?"

"Not unless you feel like getting really sick, no." Iron Man replied. "Now, Julian. I have something awesome that you should try out." He pulled out a small blaster and handed it to Julian. "I couldn't come up with a cool name for it, so I just call it Pain 1. It uses a specific pattern of vibrations to cause pain that feels like bee stings, a hot poker or a lightning shock. I used to test it out on Dr. Banner all the time."

"Oh." Julian said, turning the weapon in his hands. "Did it work?"

"Yes." Iron Man said. "I nearly died. Avoided getting killed by the Hulk AND the Black Widow. And let me add: not the first time."

"Ouch." Julian replied, stowing the blaster in a holster.

"Who's next?" Tony asked. "How about Rudaina?"

"Nothing too crazy for me, please." Rudaina requested. "I don't want to destroy Toronto, thank you very much."

"No, we don't want that." Tony agreed, searching through the arsenal. "Let's see, how about this?" He pulled out a decent sized pistol with a fiery red line around the barrel. "What about the Heatwave? Sends a burst of superheated particles that can take down any opponent. Similar to the Flame, but less destructive."

"That's neat." Rudaina said. "I'll go with it."

"Next up is Felix." Tony declared. "I have the Force-Field 7 Shooter. Warps gas particles into a protective shield that can deflect bullets and other attacks."

He handed Felix a wristband. "Just raise your arm and it will do its magic. Except it's not magic. It's science."

"And last but not least, Talha." Tony said. "Here's the Swarm 4. Shoots four bullets at the same time. Natasha has told me you've been doing well in working with firearms, I trust you with this one."

"Thanks, Tony." Talha said. "I'll try my best."

Tony suddenly looked serious, an uncharacteristic emotion for the usually brash and confident hero. "There's no such thing as trying in this profession. You've got to do it right or you'll get hurt. It's really the only way we can make progress. Sometimes, it can be tough, but you have to know what to do. Now, let's go make that Warlock wish he was never born."

"Woo-hoo!" Jules cheered. "He'll regret ever laying eyes on Natasha once we're done with him."

"Yeah." Julian affirmed. "And abstain from coffee too."

"That last one's probably not going to happen." Johan added realistically.

"Here's our plan of action." Natasha said. "Each of you will escort one class to the library. Be as fast as you can, and make sure no one gets left behind. As you exit, Clint will give you each a copy of a class's timetable and you have to go and find them."

"Okay." the students chorused.

The class filed out quickly, each getting a copy of the timetable, as well as a Force-Field 7 and a small pistol.

"Don't shoot to hurt, shoot to protect." Clint instructed as they rushed off to their respective locations.

"Anything I can do?" Bruce asked Natasha when the room was empty.

"Don't Hulk out." Natasha replied.

"I'll help the students get everyone in." Bruce decided.

"Sounds like a plan." Clint said.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Natasha asked. "Let's make some magic of our own, and win this."

And as the three Avengers ran at full tilt to the library, Clint noticed that Natasha and Bruce's fingers were tightly interlocked.

 **Chapter 20**

"You have to listen to me!" Jennifer begged the students of Mr. Pellettier's class (8G). "There's a threat to the school and you've got to come to the library. NOW."

Mr. Pellettier's class just looked at her, confused as to why their time outside was interrupted.

"There's a dangerous man who wants to destroy the Avengers." Jennifer tried to explain. "He's called the Warlock, because of his magic powers. It's a long story, involving coffee, comics and memorabilia, but he's not going to stop at murdering a few innocent students, so go, people."

Amelia smirked slightly. "You want us to believe that we're in danger of being killed by a magical weirdo? Really convincing."

"I'm serious." Jennifer pleaded. "You're all in danger."

The students didn't try to cover their obvious eye rolls. Clearly they thought that this was all an elaborate joke. They wouldn't put it past 8F to do something like this. 8G was just about to return to their soccer game when a loud gunshot startled them all.

"What was that?" James asked, wide-eyed.

The class looked to where the sound came from, and saw Nicole standing with a revolver raised to the sky.

"Move it." she growled. "Now. And for God's sake, listen to Jennifer."

Looking at her classmate, Jennifer grinned. "Alright everyone, in through the library doors."

The students didn't hesitate, running into the school and casting Nicole fearful looks.

"I want one of those." James complained, referring to Nicole's pistol, which was poised in their direction.

"They're not for irresponsible kids, James." Jennifer said. "Now, pick up the pace. Go."

James rushed off, still muttering about how he could probably outshoot Hawkeye any day.

"Ridiculous." Jennifer scoffed, as she walked after him. "Just plain genius."

"So, are we really in danger, then?" Shriya asked Jennifer as they paced into the library. "Could we actually be killed today?"

Jennifer decided to give her the facts. "Frankly, you could be killed any day, any time, doing anything. It's only a matter of how you handle it."

"Well, that's happy." Shriya muttered, following the rest of her class into the elevator.

Jennifer shrugged. "That's life for you. Not always a happy ending."

She paced over to Hawkeye, who was monitoring the cameras. "Any sign of the others?"

"No, but the Warlock is still in there." Clint said. "I'm going to call Steve in on his intercom to make sure everything is good, alright?"

"Yes." Jennifer said. "I'm just a bit worried, I mean this is a serious villain they're taking on."

"And your teachers weren't?" Clint asked, fiddling with the controls.

"Well, yes, but..."

"There's no difference, Jen. They did well the first time. They can do well again." Clint said. "Now, can you go check on the progress of everyone else?"

"Okay." Jennifer said, and rushed off.

Captain America signaled the seven students forward. Raising their various weaponry, the Prodigies advanced forward.

"No sudden movements." Tony whispered loudly. "And don't say a word."

"A word." Jules deadpanned.

"Oldest one in the book." Iron Man groaned. "Now, be serious people. We need this to go off without a hitch."

They advanced, moving toward the door. Felix ran to the keypad and, remembering the password, typed in _Coffee is a metaphor for love_.

As the door opened, Cap yelled, "Freeze! Put your hands where we can see them."

As the students peered in, they could see the Warlock's back to them

"Hasn't anyone taught you to knock before you enter?" he asked.

"I don't think this rule applies to an arrest." Ajay commented.

"Oh, it's an arrest?" the Warlock questioned. "Alright. Well, I don't think that's going to work."

"And why not?" Talha said.

"You see," the Warlock began, "I don't feel like getting arrested today. Or ever, for that matter. So I'm going to ask _you_ to surrender. Or else."

"Or else what?" Talha asked bravely.

The Warlock smiled. "Or else... this." And raising his hands to the ceiling, he called, "Parvus daemones, adiuva me."

"Is that Latin?" Iron Man groaned. "Not Latin again. Come in, Nat? What is he saying?"

Black Widow's voice came over the intercom, slightly hesitant. "Little demons, help me."

As she finished her sentence, a flash of red light appeared. It swirled in an ominous, apocalyptic way, and black figures began to pour out of the spiral.

"Little demons." Felix breathed.

Felix was definitely not exaggerating. The creatures were hideous, small things. Their mottled, green skin was covered in warts and blemishes. Beady red eyes the colour of blood were sunken deep into their faces, above a mouth filled with rotting, yet razor-sharp teeth. Held in their hands were jagged silver swords that gleamed under the glaring lights of the Warlock's hideout.

"Oh my God, what do we do?" Rudaina asked, her voice rising in pitch, unable to hide how nervous she felt at that very moment.

"We can't fight them here, the school could collapse above us." Captain America said.

"Well, there's only one thing to do now." Julian said. "RUN!"

Rudaina fired her Heatwave, and the students and Avengers rushed off. The Warlock and his cronies followed, waving their swords angrily. A few demons fell to the ground, howling and nursing painful burns, but there was still an army at the heroes' backs.

"Widow!" Tony screamed into the intercom. "We need backup, stat!"

"Calm down, Tin Man." Natasha's exasperated voice materialized. "How much do you need?"

"All the backup." Tony screeched.

"That's irrational, stupid and completely a hyperbole." Natasha said wisely. "I'll send Thor and three students."

"Three?" Iron Man yelled. "Three is not enough to beat an army."

"We've beaten armies with just the six of us. We'll manage." Black Widow replied. "And Thor should count for at least five students."

"Gah." Tony groaned.

"Stop whining." Natasha reprimanded. "Here's the plan. Lead him outside and kick his _word I'm not supposed to say in the presence of eighth graders_."

"We've heard worse." Talha said. "Much worse."

"While I'd love to hear examples, we've got to move." Iron Man said, lowering the visor on his mask. "And, Natasha, good plan. We'll meet Thor and the others in the hydro field."

A bout of static came over the intercom, and Thor's voice emanated from it. "We shall be there in a few minutes. I will be bringing Nathan, William and Hannah. Is that good, Man of Iron?"

"Perfect. But, what the heck? Bring more. We've got at least a hundred demons behind us." Tony said.

"I shall bring the reinforcements we need." Thor declared.

A grin came over Jules's face. "Prodigies, congregate!"

"What a rip-off." Tony grumbled. "Congregate? We're not in church."

"So, it needs some work." Jules muttered. "I think it's pretty good."

"It's not good, it's awful. Never say that again." Iron Man said honestly.

"CONGREGATE, CONGREGATE, CONGREGATE!" Jules yelled, and shot her gun behind her, taking down two demons. "That's my new war cry."

"Spare me." Tony said.

"Does anyone know where we're going?" Rudaina asked.

"No." Talha replied, slightly panicked.

"Yes!" a voice called, and the team saw Megan down the hallway. "Follow me. I'm getting you out of here safely."

"Not through the school, I hope?" Ajay questioned.

"There are many passages here. You just need to know which to take." Megan said, smiling. Her dimpled grin turned into an expression of shock when she saw the pack of demons behind them. "We'd better go. Getting killed by demons is not on my bucket list."

"Neither mine." Felix said. "Lead the way, Megan."

The group of ten fled down the hall, Megan directing them which way to go. They all felt like they'd been running in circles, and were getting exhausted.

Jules stopped suddenly, breathing hard. "I've got a cramp in my side." she groaned, clutching her torso.

"You've got to move, Jules." Cap yelled, still running. No one could afford to take a breath.

Jules was about to reply but screamed instead. A demon had caught her around the wrist, and was raising his sword. She struggled and screeched, but it did her no good. "Damn it, help!"

The demon's lips formed into a twisted, ugly grin as his sword's point dug into Jules's neck. A drop of burgundy blood painstakingly dripped down her coffee coloured skin, leaving a trail of slightly paler red behind. Jules whimpered in pain as the steel pushed further past her skin.

Suddenly, the demon stiffened, and let out a howl of pure agony. The hand clutching his sword fell limply to his side, and he collapsed on the ground, still in a throe of twitching. Behind him, standing triumphantly was Julian, holding the Pain 1. He extended a hand to Jules.

"Are you alright?" he asked her. Jules nodded, her hand going to her neck.

"This is awesome." Julian said, referring to the weapon in his hands. "But that was too close. Hurry, let's catch up."

And tugging her by the hand, the two of them chased after the rest of their group.

 **Chapter 21**

The team burst out of a door disguised as a stump of wood. They looked around to orient themselves, and it appeared that they were in the schoolyard, right next to the hydro field that the school looked out onto.

"Alright, take a couple steps back." Steve cautioned. "When they start coming, open fire."

They waited for a few minutes, training their weapons onto the entrance.

"I didn't realize we got this good of a distance between them." Ajay mused. "But, guys, I just wanted to say that if... well... anything goes... wrong... I had fun."

"Me too." Jules whispered, absentmindedly brushing her fingers against the now clotted cut on her neck. "You guys are great friends."

Talha nodded. "Do you know what's waiting for us in the, um, other place?"

The students fell silent, not knowing what to say. What awaited them? What was their fate? To die before they could leave their mark on the world?

"Well, I bet it's what we want to wait for." Rudaina spoke up. "What do you want to see?"

"A place with a massive library of all the books in the world." Jules said. "Where inspiration for writing is everywhere."

"Somewhere with the Winchester brothers." Megan said dreamily. "With adventure and tons of amazing things to discover. And Twenty One Pilots music. Don't forget that."

"It's where everyone is understood." Ajay added. "And no one tells you to use a microphone, or asks if you are ghetto. And a big collection of brass knuckles."

"Someplace where there's lots of fun." Felix said. "Oh, and there has to be lots to learn every day. Not boring stuff, but really cool things."

"The rectilinear propagation of light." Jules whispered with a laugh.

"A place that's warm. It's always summer there. Maybe about twenty degrees Celsius." Talha said. "I shouldn't forget the food either. All your favourite food in a buffet, and as much of it as you want."

"And a minibar." Tony interjected.

"So predictable." Talha muttered.

They could hear movement below and they steadied their weapons.

"Wherever it is, I hope I'll see you there." Steve said as the concealed door was flung open.

They began to fire at the creatures flying out from the door. A good number fell to the ground, but some escaped into the air.

"Hell!" Iron Man shrieked as suddenly, too many to shoot rose out. They all stumbled back.

"Nat, reinforcements would be good right about now." Steve yelled into his intercom, not bothering to admonish Tony on his use of language.

"Got it." Nat replied. "We're already here."

They quickly turned to see the class and the rest of the Avengers running towards them, guns blazing and gadgets firing.

Talha grinned at the sight and with the help of Jules, started to wrestle a particularly large and ugly demon to the ground. They finally took it down by Jules nailing a stun shot right into its back, and Talha finishing it off with a blast from the Swarm 4.

Ajay took on two demons at the same time. He ran at them both bravely, and grabbed them each with one hand. He bashed their heads together, and they fell to the ground, turning into puffs of black smoke. As the smoke dissipated into the air, he raised a victorious fist to the sky.

A demon had cornered Kim, but the girl just rolled her eyes. She lashed out with a powerful kick and nailed it right in the gut. As the demon recoiled, Kim let her fists fly, smashing the hideous thing with a skillful uppercut, followed by a series of punches to his ribcage. As the demon fell, Kim ran back into battle, looking for another opponent.

Nathan was firing blasts of electricity out of a gadget disguised as a watch. He aimed at the skies, taking out demon after demon. They each dropped to the ground like swatted mosquitos after he was done with them.

Praveen, Will, Keegan and Taylor were standing back to back in a circle. They had each a pistol in their hands and were shooting at any demons who got too close. They had taken down so many, there was a cloud of black smoke wafting all around them.

Rose and Willem teamed up to take the demons down. Using her superior strength (must have been all the books she carried for school), she picked Willem up by the ankles and swung him around. He knocked into the demons around them and they disintegrated instantly.

William and Katie had took to the trees and were the designated snipers. Katie would keep an eye for any demons who went after their classmates, and she'd tell William if they got too close. Together, they made an impressive team, and pretty accurate shooters as well. They had even started a friendly competition of who shot the most demons. William had gotten twenty two. Katie had forty six.

Dexter was running at full speed, something he never thought he'd do. A gargantuan demon was chasing him, somehow blasting balls of fire in his direction.

"Help!" he screeched, diving behind a tree.

Jennifer leapt into action. She used the Force-Field 7 to warp a protective shield around Dexter, and then moved on to the demon. Dodging a blast of fire, Jennifer bravely leapt onto the hulking creature. Retrieving an odd device from a holster around her waist, she raised it high into the air. It began to glow with an eerie blue light, and as it got too bright to look at, Jennifer brought it down on the demon's shoulder. "Good night." she said, nimbly hopping off the demon as it fell, sleeping.

"What was that?" Dexter asked Jennifer as she demolished the force field.

"One of the prototype gadgets, Nightlight." Jennifer stated.

"Good name for it." Dexter replied. "Appropriate."

"Yeah." Jennifer laughed, and ran off to help Jules.

Meanwhile, Nicole looked around in terror. Four demons had approached her on all sides- she was completely, utterly and hopelessly trapped.

"Muffins." she whispered anxiously, before seizing a demon by its twisted, gnarled horns, and tossing it into another. She proceeded to pull out a set of pistols, and fired them until they had no more bullets left. As more demons came, she grew more confident, using rapid kicks and punches to bring them down. A demon tried to creep up on her from behind, but she spun around and blew a white powder into its eyes. It stumbled around as Nicole closed the jar that read "Snow-blind Dust". Nicole sprinted off as the demon crashed into a tree and crumbled to black.

"Pick on someone your own size, brat!" Hannah yelled at a whimpering demon, who moments earlier, was chasing a squirrel. The hapless creature cowered as Hannah pummeled it with her clenched fists. It gave up, finally, and disintegrated. "And don't do that ever again." The squirrel looked at Hannah from the top of a tree, and she gave it a thumbs up.

Vivian, Serena and Rebecca had made a plan. Serena, a fast runner, would attract the attention of one demon, and lure it over to the bushes. There, Vivian and Rebecca would trap it by putting up a force field around the demon, and then electrocuting the field.

"It's kind of sparkly." Rebecca commented, once they had got their fifth demon. The black smoke intermingled with the lightning, floating around them.

"Only you, Rebecca, would think destruction is shiny." Serena smirked.

"But it is!" Rebecca insisted.

Vivian looked at it. "A bit, but I don't think so. Now, come on. We've got some more work to do."

Megan had run out of ammunition, and was fleeing for her life. After receiving some training from Hawkeye, she had become very skilled at the bow and arrows. But there's only a certain amount of arrows one can use before they run out.

"Oh, forget it." Megan muttered, as she whipped around and ran towards the demon chasing her. She took her bow and whacked the demon over the head with it. Megan bashed it continuously until it dissipated.

"That's original." Hawkeye laughed, as Megan came to him for extra arrows.

"Whatever works, I guess." Megan giggled as she accepted seven brand new exploding arrows from the archer.

Rudaina surveyed the field. "How're we doing?" she asked Johan, who was fending off a demon with his guns.

"Good. But the Warlock still presents a problem." Johan replied, finishing the demon off with a final blast.

"Well, we'd better keep going at the demons." Julian said, rushing over to them after shooting a demon down.

Felix joined the three students. "Everyone, good news."

"What?" Julian asked. He really needed some good news in the midst of the battle.

"Remember when we first snuck into the Warlock's lair?" Felix asked.

"How could we forget?" Rudaina grumbled.

"Well, apparently Katie took some files from there, and they had information on the Warlock's spellbook." Felix said. "His spells take two hours to recharge, so we've got to defeat the Warlock before he gets another onslaught of demons going at us."

"That's great news." Rudaina exclaimed. "Fantastic, really. Now we've got a big advantage."

"So, did you let the Avengers know?" Julian asked.

"Not yet." Felix said. "But I will for sure."

"Good." Johan said. "Who should we tell, though?"

Felix surveyed the battlefield. "Dr. Banner doesn't look too busy."

"Well, he's trying to avoid causing mass destruction." Julian pointed out. "It's a sensitive situation."

"I think we need some green power." Johan said. "It'd be helpful with so many demons flying around here."

"I don't know." Rudaina mused. "Would it be worth potential costs?"

"Heck, I don't know. Let's go ask him." Julian said, running over to the doctor. "Hey, Dr. Banner, we've got a plan."

 **Chapter 22**

"Fantastic." Bruce cried when Felix, Rudaina, Julian and Johan finished explaining. "That's huge news, and very helpful too. Using this to help orchestrate your plan, it's ingenious. Tasha's courses in tactics and plans have definitely made their impact on you four."

Felix grinned with pride, being acknowledged by the great scientist. "We just need some expert help to execute it properly. And you're just the guy we're looking for. Well, you and-"

"No." Banner cut him off. "We can't bring the... the... other guy into this. I'll most likely destroy the entire school."

"And that's where Nat, Hannah, Nicole and I come in." Rudaina said. "We're pretty good singers. And Nat, we gave her a couple lessons after she heard the jazz choir singing, and I was filling in for Grace that day. Nat's got talent, for sure. We've got a whole emergency repertoire set up in case of an accident. Skylark, What a Wonderful World, the list is pretty long. It'll calm down the Hulk for sure."

Bruce thought this over for a minute. "And you're sure it's foolproof? Will go off without a hitch?"

"Just call us the backup." Rudaina said confidently. "And just in case, we have the Emergency Gamma Radiation Neutralizer."

"All right." Bruce conceded. "I'm trusting you on this one."

Julian grinned at the doctor's response, handing him a spare SWAGun. "I think you know what to do, doc."

Dr. Banner raised it to his lips. "Avengers, assemble!" he yelled triumphantly before turning into the Hulk. The Hulk roared again into the device, and the other Avengers and Prodigies covered their ears, knowing what to expect. The blast of sound rattled the field, bringing down over two thirds of the remaining demons to their knees, exploding into bursts of black smoke.

"Nice!" Keegan yelled, his fist punching the air in celebration as he and the rest of the Avengers rushed over to the four students.

Hawkeye looked at the Hulk in horror, who was swinging two demons around, and throwing them into the ground. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"We've got a plan." Felix answered.

"And it involves the Hulk." Cap said uneasily. "I'm not sure about this."

"Well, we are." Johan said. "We've got to do this. I don't see another plan."

Black Widow considered this for a second. "Steve, go hold the Warlock off. I want to hear this plan. Unless someone has a better idea?"

Thor nodded, following Steve. "I shall aid the Captain." he called over his shoulder.

"Good." Widow stated. "You guys better talk fast. We don't have much time."

Johan stepped up. "It works like this. Nicole's going to create a bunch of illusions of Nat, surrounding the Warlock. According to the files Katie stole, a spell works until you lose concentration. If that doesn't make him lose it, I don't know what will. Then, when he's off guard, we'll get the real Nat out there. She'll lure him past the tree line, where we'll get Willem to startle the Warlock with a shot from his Laser-Firing Glasses. After he's completely discombobulated, we'll fire off a Force-Field 7 and trap him in there. Then the Hulk can do whatever the heck he wants to the guy. After what he and Nat have been through, he deserves a little smashing. We'll need at least five people helping with this. And Tony, do you have another pair of illusion goggles? Two people doing the illusions would really help."

"Got it." Tony nodded, pulling a small box out of his suit's storage compartment. "Rose, why don't you take this?"

"Okay." Rose replied, flipping open the box's lid and gently inserting the high-tech contact lenses in her eyes. She experimentally tested them out, envisioning a dancing chicken (to everyone's amusement). After she was sure they worked she walked over to Nicole, who was also readying her lenses.

"Since this is your plan," Clint said to Johan, "why don't you choose people who'll do the work."

"Well we've got Nicole, Rose, and Willem already. We'll get Nathan to be our surveillance, he'll signal Nat when we're ready for her." Johan said. "Talha will signal Willem to shoot, and Katie and Ajay will create the force field. Everyone else, protect yourself from the demons."

Clint nodded. "Alright. And if anything goes wrong, we'll step in."

"Nothing will go wrong." Johan said confidently.

"I hope not." Natasha said.

"Any time now!" Steve yelled, dodging a blast of white light from the Warlock. It ricocheted past the soldier and hurtled into Thor. A crackling sound came from the Norse God's direction, and Steve turned to see Thor encased in a block of ice.

"Hurry up, girls." he muttered, as he sliced through the frozen prison with his shield.

From behind a bush, Rose nodded at Nicole. "You ready?"

The brunette nodded. "Yes. Let's do this. Surround him."

The two eighth graders crossed their fingers as they created the illusions. And what the Avengers would eventually dub 'the Natashapocalypse' began to happen. Dozens of Black Widows flickered into existence. Some wore Nat's traditional uniform, others wore bright red minidresses, and a few sported flowing white sundresses.

The Warlock stopped dead and blinked in shock. "Damn." he muttered as every demon vanished. He looked around curiously, wondering where this marvelous occurrence came from.

Nathan peered around from behind a tree. "You're on, Tasha. Good luck."

The spy gratefully nodded as she stepped out. "Looking for me, _Andrew_?" she said, emphasizing his name. With a confident flip of her flame-red hair, she walked towards him.

"Natasha, dear. How wonderful to see you." the Warlock said smoothly. "And, well, every other you. Although they're not as beautiful as the original."

Natasha blushed. "I wanted to speak to you. It's very important."

"Well, of course." the villain replied.

"Follow me." Nat said, leading him to the tree line.

"I'd follow you anywhere." he said flirtatiously.

As she turned around, Black Widow gagged internally. _What a creep!_ Romanoff thought to herself.

The pair stood between two trees, facing each other.

"You know, Tasha..." the Warlock began.

"Don't call me Tasha." Black Widow snapped.

"Sorry, Miss Romanoff." the Warlock apologized. "But now that I'm talking to you, I wanted to tell you about something. When the principal of your school hatched her plan to take over the world, didn't you find it suspicious that a normal woman would get such a notion? All a part of _my_ plan. I hypnotized her in order to destroy the Avengers and help me achieve supreme rule. But I didn't expect those students of yours to horribly wreck everything. But if you want a job done well, you must do it yourself. Right Miss Romanoff?"

Nat turned her head discreetly to see Talha peering from behind the tree on her right. She nodded quickly and Talha moved back behind the foliage.

"Now, Willem." Talha whispered urgently.

Willem gazed at the Warlock and a beam fired out of the glasses, straight at the nerdy antagonist.

"Gah!" the Warlock screamed as the stream of burning light singed his shoulder, leaving a blackened patch on his jacket. As he flailed around, Natasha backed off.

"Where are you going?" the Warlock yelled.

Just then, Katie and Ajay leapt down from the tree. "Surprise!" they cried in unison as they lifted their hands to shoot the Force-Field 7 at the Warlock. The force fields enveloped him, and he sank to the ground in despair, hammering at the walls.

"Why?" he howled, looking at Natasha.

Natasha smiled ruefully and called behind her, "Hey, big guy? Come and get it."

The Warlock's eyes widened in shock as the Hulk lumbered over to him.

Crashing the force field, the Hulk lifted the Warlock off the ground. "Hulk smash puny magician." the green guy growled as the Warlock whimpered for mercy. Spinning the man rapidly, the Hulk threw the Warlock into the side of the school. The villain lay there as the Hulk roared at him.

Natasha walked over to the Hulk and lay a hand on his green skin. "That's my big guy." she said proudly.

Tony flew to the Warlock's side and locked handcuffs onto his wrists. "You are under arrest for attempted murder, attempted world domination and harassment." he told the Warlock.

The Warlock just groaned in pain.

"Does anyone else feel a huge breeze?" Dexter asked the others, who nodded.

The Prodigies and Avengers looked up to see a massive object flying above them.

"The Helicarrier." Nathan breathed in awe. "Awesome."

"Well done." a voice boomed from above, which everyone recognized as Director Fury's.

"Now you appear?" Taylor grumbled. "Not when we actually need help?"

"Perfect timing." Praveen complained.

"8F, Prodigies." Fury continued. "You have demonstrated outstanding courage in the face of danger. S.H.I.E.L.D. commends you for your services to Canada, America and the world. We would like to award all of you the Medal of Justice and Heroics for what you've done. Tomorrow there shall be a ceremony on the Helicarrier, which will be televised, to award our next generation of heroes."

"We also invite you during the summer to our Young Agents of Tomorrow course, taught by your mentors. That saying, we'd like to make you all agents. The Prodigies will be recognized and funded by S.H.I.E.L.D. as an official superhero team." Fury finished, amidst screams of joy.

"I've got it." Jules yelled over the pandemonium. "For justice! For retribution! For the Prodigies!"

 **Epilogue**

The Prodigies and their parents milled around the control room of the Helicarrier. The students were incredibly excited, chatting to Maria Hill and Nick Fury about what's to come in the future.

"The course will combine tactics, agent protocol and etiquette, logistics, weapon crafting and superpowers." Hill explained to a group of excited girls. "But, you should probably get on stage. The ceremony's about to start."

The S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel had built a temporary stage for the ceremony to take place on. 8F filed on, standing in a row. For once, they were quiet.

Fury strode on stage with Maria, who was holding a box of medals. Each one was engraved with the awardee's name.

Talha was the first in line. Fury pinned the medal over his heart. The Director continued down the line, awarding the medals to each students. When he got to Rudaina, the last one, he pinned the medal and stepped to the speaker's podium.

"Today we acknowledge Talha, Jules, Serena, Katie, Nicole, William, Vivian, Rebecca, Felix, Jennifer, Taylor, Nathan, William, Keegan, Rose, Kimberly, Ajay, Praveen, Dexter, Johan, Hannah, Julian, Megan, Willem and Rudaina for action in the face of danger." Fury said, as the audience of parents, agents and media crews applauded.

"They showed incredible teamwork, intelligence and talent in the field. They have not once, but twice prevented world domination. S.H.I.E.L.D. commends them for their work. They are true heroes, and officially agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." The audience exploded into cheers of celebratory joy. "But that is not all. Due to recent developments, we have found Mrs. Boise not guilty of her crimes, due to hypnosis by Mr. Wedran, the Warlock. We are setting her free and letting her come back to John G. Althouse, as well as reducing the sentences of all the teachers involved in the crime, as they joined majorly of their own free will. So, thank you again, Prodigies. You have done the people of the world a great service."

Forgetting dignity, the students whooped along and jumped like school graduates, which they would be in a few short days.

"Well, my only question is, what's next?" Hannah asked.

"We're going to be heroes!" Megan hollered.

Kim smiled. "We already are." she said quietly. "And we always have been."

 ** _The End_**


End file.
